1 


:ICULTL 


ROEDING'S 

FRUIT  GROWERS' 

GUIDE 


By   GEO.    C.    ROEDING 

FRESNO,  CALIFORNIA 


Copyrighted  19 19  by  Geo.  C.  Roeding 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


MAIN  LIBRARY-,  'SHICUl.TURE  DEFT. 


,, 


Roeding's  Fruit  Growers*  Guide 


BEGINNING  RIGHT 

Fruit  growing  is  a  business,  pure  and  simple.  It  had 
a  very  important  bearing  on  our  winning  the  war.  The 
purchases  of  dried  fruits  in  California  alone,  exclusive 
of  canned  goods  for  the  men  who  were  at  the  front, 
aggregated  .$25,000,000  of  the  crop  of  1918.  Vegetables, 
canned  and  dried,  formed  another  very  important  ad- 
junct in  the  diet  of  our  men,  and  the  purchases  ran  up 
to  millions  of  dollars.  Intensity  in  farming  operations 
is  being  encouraged  now  more  than  ever  before.  A 
man  who  planted  fruit  trees  and  intercropped  with 
vegetables  during  the  period  of  the  war  certainly 
fulfilled  his  obligation  to  the  Government.  He  not  only 
provided  for  the  future  when  he  planted  his  orchard, 
and  increased  the  value  of  his  land,  but  in  addition  to 
this  he  was  encouraged  to  go  to  the  expense  of  install- 
ing a  pumping  plant  for  developing  water,  building 
ditches  and,  where  necessary,  cement  pipe  lines,  with 
much  more  care  and  thoroughness  than  he  would  have 
done  were  he  devoting  his  attention  merely  to  the 
raising  of  vegetables  alone.  It  is  becoming  more  and 
more  apparent  in  these  days  that  a  fruit  grower  should 
specialize.  This  does  not  mean  that  a  man  living  on  a 
farm  should  not  have  a  small  orchard,  berries,  vege- 
tables, alfalfa,  a  cow,  poultry  and  hogs.  It  is  being 
demonstrated,  however,  that  with  our  diversified  cli- 
mates and  soils  certain  localities  are  better  adapted  to 
one  variety  of  fruit  than  another.  This  point  should 
never  be  lost  sight  of.  There  is  far  too  great  a  tendency 
on  the  part  of  many  people  to*  plant  the  fruit  which 
has  been  bringing  the  highest  prices  for  several  seasons, 
utterly  disregarding  the  fact  that  both  soil  and  climate 
may  not  be  conducive  to  make  the  venture  a  success. 

PREPARATION  OF  THE  SOIL 

It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  that  the  land  be  put 
in  first-class  condition  to  receive  the  trees.  Too  great 
an  emphasis  cannot  be  laid  on  this  one  point.  The 
subject  is  worthy  of  careful  analysis.  If  the  orchard  is 
to  be  planted  where  irrigating  is  to  be  practised,  careful 
attention  must  be  given  to  grading  so  as  to  permit  the 
water  to  run  in  furrows  or  to  be  properly  distributed  in 
checks  around  each  tree  to  be  irrigated.  When  scraping 
the  land  great  care  should  be  exercised  not  to  remove 
the  surface  of  the  soil  to  too  great  a  depth,  for  where 
this  is  done  it  causes  the  trees  to  grow  poorly  and  neither 
thorough  cultivation  nor  irrigation  will  overcome  this 
trouble  for  years  to  come.  Where  it  is  necessary  to  take 
off  the  surface  soil  to  a  foot  or  more  in  order  to  permit 
a  high  piece  of  land  to  be  irrigated  it  is  far  better,  to 
pump  the  water  to  the  higher  elevation  and  distribute 
it  in  this  manner.  In  other  words,  in  preparing  land 
which  is  to  be  irrigated,  bear  in  mind  that  every  point 
of  the  field  should  be  graded,  not  leveled,  to  permit 
every  foot  of  it  to  be  covered  with  water.  Nothing  will 
do  so  much  to  promote  the  success  of  an  undertaking  as 


to  commence  the  work  of  leveling,  plowing,  and  the  instal- 
lation of  the  irrigating  system  early  in  the  fall  months. 
One  point  I  want  to  be  very  emphatic  on  and  that  is, 
do  not  attempt  to  plant  trees  and  vines  on  a  commercial 
scale,  where  irrigation  is  to  be  practised,  without  know- 
ing where  the  supply  of  water  is  to  come  from.  If  the 
water  is  to  be  supplied  by  a  canal  system,  have  the 
main  and  lateral  ditches  large  enough  to  carry  a  suffi- 
cient volume  of  water  to  permit  the  irrigating  of  the  land 
as  expeditiously  as  possible.  Many  people  make  the 
mistake,  where  they  do  not  understand  engineering,  of 
attempting  to  do  the  work  themselves  without  any  ex- 
pert advice,  thus  causing  themselves  an  endless  amount 
of  trouble  through  the  fact  that  their  ditches  are  not 
properly  located,  the  banks  not  having  sufficient  slope 
and,  in  many  instances,  caving  in.  It  is  important  to 
have  the  weirs,  where  there  happens  to  be  a  heavy  fall 
in  a  ditch,  properly  located  to  prevent  washing  of  the 
banks.  Where  a  cement  pipe  system  is  to  be  installed, 
even  greater  care  must  be  exercised  to  have  the  pipe 
lines  on  a  grade  and  the  stand-pipes  properly  located 
to  get  the  best  results.  The  diameter  of  the  pipe  is  de- 
termined by  the  volume  of  water  to  be  carried  and  by 
the  fall  it  has.  Far  better  to  err  on  the  part  of  having 
the  pipe  system  too  large  than  to  make  the  mistake  of 
having  it-too  small  aad  not  be  in  a  position  to  convey 
the  quantity  of  water  which  is  available  to  the  trees. 
If  the  water  is  to  be  pumped  the  engineer  should  deter- 
mine the  location  of  the  plant  and  see  to  it  that  it  is 
large  enough  to  provide  the  necessary  water  for  the 
piece  of  land  to  be  irrigated.  An  engineer  is  an  impor- 
tant factor  in  a  case  like  this  and  his  charges  for  services 
rendered  will  be  many  times  repaid  in  having  the  plant 
installed  in  such  a  manner  as  to  secure  a  maximum  of 
efficiency  at  a  minimum  of  expense.  There  is  probably 
no  other  institution  in  the  world  which  has  more  reliable 
and  authentic  data  on  the  installation  of  irrigating  sys- 
tems or,  for  that  matter,  any  other  subject  pertaining 
to  agricultural  and  horticultural  work,  than  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture.  Bulletins  may  be 
obtained  therefrom  at  from  five  to  ten  rents  each  on 
any  subject  pertaining  to  farming  operations  by  writing 
to  the  Division  of  Publications,  Washington,  D.  C. 
After  all  the  details  relative  to  the  irrigating  of  the  land 
to  be  improved  have  been  carefully  considered,  its 
preparation  for  planting  is  the  next  step  in  line.  Deep 
plowing  and  particularly  subsoiling  will  do  much  to 
promote  the  rapid  growth  of  trees  and  vines.  It  may 
not  be  practical  during  the  fall  months  to  plow  deeply, 
due  to  lack  of  rain.  However,  if  possible  after  the 
leveling  is  finished,  plow  the  land  and  finish  with  a 
buck-scraper.  The  Fresno  scraper  is  probably  the 
best  all-around  implement  for  rough  grading,  but  for 
the  finer  work,  filling  up  small  holes  and  for  smoothing, 
there  is  nothing  like  the  first-named  tool.  Shallow 
plowing  should  always  be  done  when  conditions  are 

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RO£DING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


most  favorable.     By  all  means  plow  and  harrow  the 
land  just  before  planting. 

Drainage  should  be  given  consideration,  particularly 
if  the  land  is  low  and  liable  to  have  water  stand  too 
closely  to  the  surface  during  the  spring  and  summer 
months.  In  California,  where,  as  a  rule,  there  is  no 
substrata  of  clay,  tile  drains  are  the  best.  In  soils 
where  there  are  stratas  of  hardpan  with  intervening 
spaces  of  soil  between,  it  becomes  necessary  to  lay  the 
tile  on  redwood  boards  which  are  grooved  out  to  hold 
the  tile  in  place.  Should  this  not  be  done  in  soils  of  this 
character,  when  there  is  a  superabundance  of  water 
in  the  ground  it  becomes  a  loblolly  and  the  tile  sinks 
out  of  place.  It  is  necessary  to  have  sump  boxes  (not 
less  than  five  hundred  feet  apart)  made  out  of  two-inch 
redwood  boards,  to  take  care  of  the  deposits  of  silt  and 
sand  from  the  drain  pipe.  If  made  of  cement,  they 
should  not  be  less  than  three  feet  in  diameter,  the  red- 
wood boxes  should  be  three  and  one-half  feet  square. 
The  bottom  of  the  sump  should  be  at  least  two  feet 
below  the  pipe.  Where  the  pipe  line  is  within  three  to 
four  feet  of  the  surface  of  the  ground  and  is  laid  to 
within  twenty-five  to  thirty  feet  of  the  trees  or  vines, 
it  is  necessary  to  clean  this  pipe  line  out  frequently  dur- 
ing the  summer  months.  A  steel  brush  will  have  to  be 
dragged  through  it  to  remove  the  roots,  which  are  sure 
to  enter  between  the  sections  of  drain  tile.  The  brush 
also  stirs  up  the  silt,  which  will  invariably  collect  in  the 
bottom  of  the  pipe.  The  practical  way  to  handle  this 
is  to  keep  a  No.  8  galvanized  wire  in  the  drain  at  all 
times.  When  the  cleaning  operation  is  to  be  carried 
out  this  wire  is  used  to  draw  a  three-eighths  inch  woven 
wire  cable  through  the  drain.  To  this  is  attached  the 
steel  brush.  A  windlass  is  placed  in  the  next  box  and 
the  brush  is  drawn  through.  There  should  be  a  swivel 
on  each  end  of  the  brush.  It  is  necessary  to  attach  the 
galvanized  wire  to  the  brush  to  pull  it  back,  as  it  may 
be  necessary  to  repeat  the  operation  of  drawing  it 
through  several  times  before  the  drain  is  clean. 

SELECTING  NURSERY  STOCK 

One  point  should  never  be  forgotten  in  purchasing 
trees,  and  that  is,  that  as  far  as  appearances  go  one  tree 
may  apparently  be  as  good  as  another.  A  little  thought 
on  the  part  of  the  purchaser  will  convince  him  that, 
although  nursery  stock  may  be  classed  as  merchandise 
in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the  word,  there  are  many  im- 
portant factors  that  may  mean  the  ultimate  success  or 
failure  to  the  planter  in  his  undertaking.  California 
soils  demand  a  variety  of  roots.  To  plant  a  prune  on 
peach  root,  on  soil  which  might  be  very  wet  during  the 
greater  part  of  the  year,  would  mean  the  loss  of  the  tree 
most  likely  just  as  soon  as  it  came  into  bearing.  The 
selecting  of  buds  from  the  trees  producing  the  very 
best  quality  of  fruit  and  which  are  vigorous  and  healthy, 
should  never  be  lost  sight  of.  There  are  some  stocks 
which  may  be  apparently  all  right  so  far  as  growth  goes, 
but  which  will  die  just  about  the  time  the  orchard  comes 
into  its  prime.  This  is  very  noticeable  where  any  va- 
riety of  citrus  tree  is  budded  on  the  lemon  root.  The 
tree  dies  without  any  apparent  reason.  It  is  a  well- 
known  fact  among  experienced  nurserymen  that  the 


lemon  should  never  be  used  as  a  stock  owing  to  its 
tendency  to  do  this.  A  conscientious  nurseryman  fully 
realizes  the  responsibility  resting  on  his  shoulders  and 
if  he  is  going  to  fulfill  his  duties  to  the  purchaser  of  his 
goods,  he  is  going  to  strain  every  point  to  have  them  as 
represented.  It  is  very  easy  to  practise  a  deception, 
because  it  takes  three  years  for  the  buyer  to  learn 
whether  or  not  the  trees  delivered  to  him  are  true  to 
name.  Therefore,  be  as  careful  in  the  selecting  of  a 
nurseryman  as  you  would  be  your  physician.  The  per- 
sonality and  reliability  of  the  firm  with  which  you 
are  dealing  should  never  be  overlooked  when  buying 
trees.  The  firm  that  never  relaxes  its  attention  to  every 
detail,  from  the  planting  of  the  seed  to  the  time  the 
trees  are  properly  packed  and  shipped,  is  the  one  to 
favor  with  your  business. 

TIME  TO  PLANT 

Fall  planting  is  never  desirable  in  California,  because 
the  growing  season  often  extends  into  the  month  of 
November.  It  rarely  occurs  that  frosts  are  severe 
enough  toward  the  latter  part  of  the  month  to  check 
the  growth.  The  roots  of  trees  dug  before  they  have 
fully  matured  turn  black,  and  the  tree  either  starts 
very  slowly  in  the  spring  or  does  not  grow  at  all.  The 
best  time  to  set  deciduous  trees  is  from  January  to 
April  1st.  All  evergreen  fruit  trees  should  be  planted 
from  February  to  May  1st,  although  in  many  localities, 
particularly  sections  of  the  state  where  the  summer 
climate  is  cool,  planting  may  be  continued  later  than 
this. 

A  safe  rule  to  follow  is  to  plant  deciduous  trees  when 
dormant  and  those  which  are  classed  as  evergreens  as 
soon  as  the  sap  commences  to  rise  in  the  spring. 

TREATMENT  WHEN  RECEIVED 
The  trees  when  received  at  point  of  destination  should 
be  immediately  unpacked  and  the  roots  laid  in  a  trench 
and  well  covered  with  soil,  which  should  then  be 
thoroughly  wet  down.  If  delayed  in  transit,  thereby 
becoming  dry  and  suffering  from  exposure  (the  bark 
showing  signs  of  shriveling),  it  is  a  good  plan  to  immerse 
the  trees  in  a  tank  overnight  and  the  following  day 
bury  root  and  top  completely  in  damp  soil  for  a  few 
days  until  they  become  normal,  when  they  may  be  with 
safety  planted  out.  Should  trees  be  frozen  while  in 
transit,  place  the  package  in  a  cellar  or  some  other  place 
free  from  frost  until  thawed  out,  when  they  can  be  un- 
packed and  heeled  in,  preparatory  to  planting.  Trees 
treated  in  this  manner  will  not  be  injured  by  having 
been  frozen. 

It  is  quite  practicable  to  ship  trees  when  dormant  to 
other  localities  where  the  weather  or  seasonable  con- 
ditions might  not  make  it  advisable  to  plant  on  arrival. 
When  the  trees  are  received,  place  them  in  cold  storage. 
The  temperature  should  be  maintained  at  from  32  to 
35  degrees  Fahrenheit.  The  shipment  should  be  exam- 
ined and  if  found  to  be  in  good  condition,  the  contents 
should  remain  undisturbed  in  the  case  or  bale  until  the 
time  for  planting  arrives.  This  method  of  handling 
trees  is  thoroughly  practicable,  so  much  so  that 
it  is  possible  to  ship  trees  to  the  antipodes  during 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


the  winter  season  and  have  the  shipment  on  arrival 
there  placed  in  cold  storage  until  the  opening  of  the 
planting  season. 

PREPARING  TREES  FOR  PLANTING 
Just  immediately  before  planting  be  sure  to  examine 
the  roots  carefully,  and  cut  away  to  a  smooth  surface 
all  bruised,  lacerated  and  broken  roots  and  rootlets 
with  a  sharp  knife  or  pruning  shear.  The  cut  on  the 
larger  roots  should  be  sloping  and  made  on  the  lower 
side  of  the  root.  The  tree  can  now  be  said  to  be  ready 
for  its  permanent  orchard  home. 

If  planting  is  delayed  through  circumstances  beyond 
the  control  of  the  orchardist  and  a  warm  spell  should 
intervene  in  February  or  March,  causing  the  buds  of 
the  trees  or  vines  to  start,  remove  them  from  the 
trenches,  shake  out  all  the  dirt  from  the  roots  and  ex- 
pose them  for  two  hours  in  the  early  morning  on  a  calm 
day  to  the  rays  of  the  sun.  This  will  cause  the  small, 
white  rootlets  which  have  started,  to  dry  up,  and  if  the 
trees  are  heeled  in  (wetting  them  down,  of  course),  in  a 
shady  place  their  dormancy  may  be  prolonged  several 
weeks. 

HOW  TO  PLANT 

Planting  System. — There  are  a  number  of  methods 
of  planting  an  orchard,  but  vineyards  are  usually  set  in 
the  square  system.  In  order  to  eliminate  much  of  the 
•confusion  that  seems  to  exist  in  the  mind  of  the  planter 
when  deviating  from  the  rectangular  or  square  system, 
we  are  submitting  plans  drawn  to  a  scale  and  are  out- 
lining under  each  one  of  them  the  plan  of  procedure. 
It  is  very  important  in  laying  off  the  ground  to  have 
straight  lines,  not  only  for  the  purpose  of  retaining  sym- 
metry in  the  orchard  but  also  for  the  many  other  ad- 
vantages in  cultivating,  irrigating,  etc. 

Explanation  of  Diagrams. — The  planting  distances 
are  represented  by  the  figure  1,  all  other  related  dis- 
tances by  multiple  parts  of  1,  so  that  any  desired  dis- 
tance on  any  of  the  diagrams  may  be  obtained  by  the 
simple  process  of  multiplying  the  desired  •  distance  by 
the  distance  indicated  on  diagram. 

Square  System. — One  of  the  advantages  of  this  sys- 
tem is  that  it  permits  cultivation  in  both  ways,  espe- 
cially when  the  trees  become  larger.  The  trees  are  not 
equally  distributed  over  the  ground,  however. 

The  first  step  to  be  taken  in  this  and  the  following 
plans  is  to  have  the  base  lines  at  right  angles.  In 
planting  a  large  place,  these  lines  should  be  obtained  by 
a  transit.  By  studying  the  plans  and  observing  the 
directions  herewith  given,  the  method  of  procedure  is 
readily  understood. 

SQUARE  PLANTING 

Rule:  Square  Method.— Multiply  the  distance  in 
feet  between  the  rows  by  the  distance  the  plants  are 
apart  in  the  rows,  and  the  product  will  be  the  number 
of  square  feet  for  each  plant  or  hill;  which,  divided  into 
the  number  of  feet  in  an  acre  (43,560),  will  give  the  num- 
ber of  plants  or  trees  to  an  acre. 

Lay  off  the  base  lines  A  B  and  A  C  along  two  sides  of 
the  planting  field  in  such  a  manner  that  the  angle  at  A 


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is  an  exact  right  angle  (90  degrees),  and  set  stakes  on 
said  base  lines  the  desired  distance  apart.  Care  must 
be  exercised  to  have  all  stakes  on  true  lines. 

A  right  angle  can  be  formed  in  the  field  by  the  fol- 
lowing method : 

Lay  off  30  feet  from  A  along  base  line  A  B  on  the  dia- 
gram; then  a  point  on  base  line  A  C  will  be  40  feet  from 
A  and  50  feet  from  the  other  end  of  the  30-foot  length. 

After  setting  the  stakes  along  the  base  lines  at  plant- 
ing distance  apart,  the  next  step  should  be  to  set  stakes 
along  secondary  lines  drawn  parallel  with  base  line 
A  B,  and  such  distances  therefrom  as  will  be  multiples 
of  the  planting  distance  required,  and  at  the  same  time 
no  further  apart  than  permitted  by  the  length  of  the 
planting  chain.  This  should  preferably  be  of  stranded 
wire  No.  19  gauge  and  provided  with  numbered  metal 
tags  designed  to  be  inserted  at  desired  distances  apart. 

Experience  has  demonstrated  that  a  250-foot  chain 
is  the  most  serviceable.  The  chain  should  be  stretched 
for  several  days  before  using  to  prevent  too  much  varia- 
tion in  the  field. 

The  chain  should  be  provided  with  a  ring  and  about 
two  feet  of  surplus  length  of  wire  on  each  end  for  easy 
manipulation  and  stretching.  •  Iron  stake  pins  should 
be  used  to  hold  the  chain  in  position.  To  do  this  prop- 
erly it  is  advisable  to  lay  off  a  temporary  base  line  B  D 
from  end  B  of  base  line  A  B  and  at  right  angles  thereto, 
setting  flags  on  such  temporary  base  lines  at  distances 
to  correspond  with  the  spacing  of  the  secondary  lines. 

With  the  flags  as  a  guide,  lay  off  the  planting  stakes 
on  the  secondary  lines,  starting  always  from  base  line 
A  C.  Then  all  that  is  required  to  complete  the  staking 
will  be  to  stretch  the  chain  between  similar  points  on 
the  secondary  lines  and  set  the  stakes  at  each  tag  on 
the  chain  previously  adjusted. 

Quincunx  System. — The  'only  advantage  in  this 
method  of  planting  is  in  connection  with  using  a  filler 
temporarily,  to  be  dug  up  as  soon  as  there  is  any  indi- 
cation of  crowding.  This  permits  of  double  the  amount 
of  trees  to  the  acre  than  in  the  square  system. 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


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Proceed  to  stake  the  field  in  squares.  Then  without 
the  aid  of  a  chain,  place  a  stake  in  the  center  of  each 
square.  This  is  readily  determined  by  sighting  along 
the  two  diagonal  rows  of  stakes  at  right  angles  to  each 
other. 

Rule:  Quincunx  Method. — Multiply  the  number  re- 
quired to  the  acre  "Square  Method"  by  2.  The  result 
will  be  the  number  of  plants  required  to  the  acre  by  this 
method. 

Hexagonal  System. — This  is  the  only  one  in  which 
the  trees  are  equidistant  in  every  direction,  every  tree 
being  at  one  point  of  an  equilateral  triangle. 

The  name  "Septuple,"  sometimes  applied  to  this 
system,  refers  to  the  fact  that  the  number  of  trees  in 
each  group  unit  is  seven.  Note  hexagon  on  diagram. 

To  illustrate  the  plan  to  be  followed,  we  will  consider 
that  the  trees  are  to  be  set  24  feet  apart.  Then  on  base 
line  A  B  set  stakes  24  feet  apart.  On  base  line  A  C  set 
stakes  0.866  times  the  planting  distance  apart  or  every 
20.784  feet  (or  20  feet  9  inches). 

The  first  stake  on  the  intermediate  line,  shown  by  the 
hollow  circle  on  the  diagram,  should  be  12  feet  from  the 
base  line  A  C  and  20  feet  9  inches  from  base  line  C  D. 

In  using  this  method  of  staking,  tags  of  two  different 
colors  should  be  used,  one  starting  at  zero  and  the  other 
.50  times  the  planting  distance  from  the  zero  end  of  the 
chain. 

For  the  convenience  of  the  planter  we  are  giving 
herewith  the  distances  between  rows  of  trees,  parallel 
with  base  line  A  B  on  the  diagram,  to  correspond  with 
various  planting  distances: 

As  an  illustration,  if  trees  are  planted  18  feet  apart 
on  base  line  A  B,  the  following  row  would  be  15  feet  7 
inches  and  correspondingly  greater  distance  where  the 
trees  are  to  be  planted  further  apart. 
Base  line  A  B  18  ft.  Secondary  line  15  ft.  7  in.  from  A  B 
Base  line  A  B  20  ft.  Secondary  line  17  ft.  4  in.  from  A  B 
Base  line  A  B  22  ft.  Secondary  line  19  ft.  ^  in.  from  A  B 
Base  line  A  B  24  ft.  Secondary  line  20  ft.  9  in.  from  A  B 
Base  line  A  B  28  ft.  Secondary  line  24  ft.  3  in.  from  A  B 


Base  line  A  B  30  ft.  Secondary  line  26  ft.  0  in.  from  A  B 
Base  line  A  B  36  ft.  Secondary  line  31  ft.  2  in.  from  A  B 
Baseline  A  B  40  ft.  Secondary  line  34  ft.  Sin.  from  A  B 

Rule:  Hexagonal  Method. — First,  figure  the  number 
of  trees  required  per  acre  by  the  "Square  Method,"  us- 
ing the  same  planting  distance;  then  divide  by  the 
decimal  .866.  The  result  will  be  the  number  of  plants 
required  to  the  acre  by  this  method. 

Alternate  System. — We  will  assume  that  the  plant- 
ing distance  is  to  be  24  feet  apart,  and  then  all  stakes 
on  base  line  A  B  will  be  24  feet  apart.  The  alternate 
stakes  on  this  line  will  be  for  temporary  use  only.  In 
setting  stakes  on  lines  parallel  with  base  A  C,  the  tags 
of  one  color  should  be  spaced  24  feet  apart,  commencing 
at  the  zero  end.  Tags  of  another  color  (for  use  on  alter- 
nate lines)  should  be  spaced  24  feet  apart,  commencing 
at  a  distance  of  12  feet  from  the  zero  end  of  the  chain. 

Rule:  Alternate  Method. — The  number  of  plants  re- 
quired per  acre  by  this  method  is  the  same  as  that  re- 
quired by  the  "Square  Method"  with  similar  planting 
distances. 

Planting  Distances.  Distance 

apart  each  way 

Standard  Apples 25  to  30  feet 

Standard  Pears. : 24  to  30  feet 

Dwarf  Pear 12  to  15  feet 

Strong-growing  Cherries 24  to  30  feet 

Duke  and  Morello  Cherries. 18  to  24  feet 

Standard  Plums  and  Prunes 24  to  30  feet 

Peaches  and  Nectarines 24  to  30  feet 

Apricots 24  to  30  feet 

Figs 25  to  40  feet 

Olives ' 30  to  35  feet 

Citrus  trees 22  to  30  feet 

Walnuts 40  to  60  feet 

Almonds 24  to  30  feet 

Grapes 6x6,  6x12,  8x8  and  8x10  feet 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


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NUMBER  OF  TREES  TO  THE 

Distance 

Square 

Quincunx      ] 

rlexagol 

8ft. 

680 

1360 

785 

10ft. 

435 

870 

500 

12ft. 

302 

604 

349 

14ft. 

222 

444 

255 

16ft. 

170 

340 

196 

18ft. 

134 

268 

154 

20ft. 

109 

218 

124 

22ft. 

90 

180 

104 

24ft. 

75 

150 

87 

25ft. 

70 

140 

80 

26ft. 

64 

128 

74 

28ft. 

56 

112 

.64 

30ft. 

48 

96 

55 

32ft. 

43 

86 

49 

36  ft. 

34 

68 

39 

40ft. 

27 

54 

31 

45  ft, 

22 

44 

25 

Alternate 
680 
435 
302 
222 
170 
134 
109 
90 
75 
70 
64 
56 
48 
43 
34 
27 
22 

Note. — All  of  these  figures  are  not  exact  for  planting 
one  acre,  but  are  intended  for  the  planting  of  a  multiple 
of  acres. 

BLASTING  THE  HOLES 

Much  interest  has  been  manifested  of  late  years  in 
dynamiting  the  holes  prior  to  the  planting  of  the  trees. 
It  is  absolutely  necessary  to  do  this  in  hardpan  soils  in 
order  to  plant  trees  at  all. 

It  has  been  the  practice  not  to  blast  where  the  hard- 
pan  came  within  three  feet  of  the  surface.  Actual 
experience  has  demonstrated  that  not  only  striking  and 
remarkable  development  in  the  growth  of  trees  had  been 
secured  by  blasting  where  hardpan  was  found,  but  in 
any  soil  of  a  heavy,  compact  nature.  It  does  not  take 
much  of  a  stretch  of  the  imagination  to  comprehend  the 
fact  that  a  thorough  disintegration  of  the  soil,  per- 
mitting the  roots  to  ramify  in  every  direction,  will  pro- 
mote a  rapid  root  and  top  growth.  The  drilling  of  the 
hardpan  is  .carried  on  very  expeditiously  nowadays  by 
the  use  of  a  power  drill  mounted  on  a  wagon. 


IMPORTANT  DETAILS 

As  has  been  suggested  previously,  above  all  things 
have  your  ground  in  the  very  best  condition  of  tilth. 
The  importance  of  this  one  point  cannot  be  dwelt  upon 
too  forcibly,  for  it  not  only  insures  more  rapid  work  on 
the  part  of  the  men  setting  your  trees,  but  in  addition 
to  this,  not  having  any  clods  to  contend  with,  the  fine 
loose  soil  packs  around  the  roots,  when  tramped  in.  If 
for  any  reason  there  should  be  no  water  available  for 
settling  the  trees  there  is  less  likelihood  of  their  drying 
out. 

A  stake  about  half  an  inch  square  and  one  foot  long, 
split  out  of  redwood,  will  be  found  to  be  a  very  conven- 
ient size^as  a  marker  for  the  setting  of  the  trees.  Dip 
about  six  inches  of  one  end  in  whitewash.  They  can 
then  be  readily  seen,  and  should  any  of  the  stakes  be 
out  of  line  it  will  be  noticed  at  once.  Before  digging  the 
holes  it  is  necessary  to  have  a  tree  setting  board.  This 
is  easily  made  out  of  a  piece  of  1x4  six  feet  long  with  an 
inch  hole  at  each  end  and  a  notch  in  the  center.  Place 
the  notched  center  against  the  stake  where  the  tree  is  to 
be  planted  and  push  a  stake  into  the  ground  through  the 
holes  at  each  end  of  the  planter  and  remove  the  center 
stake.  The  hole  may  now  be  dug  and  this  should  not 
be  less  than  18  inches  in  diameter  and  18  inches  deep. 
After  the  hole  is  dug,  replace  the  board  over  the  end 
stakes  in  its  former  position,  then  plant  the  tree  with 
the  trunk  end  resting  against  the  center  notch  in  the 
board  and  it  will  be  in  identically  the  same  place  as  the 
stake  which  was  removed  to  dig  the  hole. 

In  setting  out,  one  person  should  hold  the  tree  in  an 
upright  position  against  the  notch  in  the  tree  setter, 
while  another  shovels  or  fills  in  the  loose  soil  around  it, 
first  spreading  out  the  roots  and  rootlets  in  as  natural  a 
position  as  possible.  The  surface  or  friable  soil  should 
be  put  in  first  among  the  roots,  care  being  taken  to  fill 
in  every  interstice,  thus  bringing  all  the  roots  in  direct 
contact  with  the  soil.  When  the  hole  is  two-thirds  full, 
firm  the  earth  thoroughly  about  the  roots,  but  before 
doing  this  draw  the  tree  up  to  its  permanent  position. 
The  top  three  to  four  inches  of  soil  should  not  to  be 
tramped. 


8FT. 

Planting  board.    " 

A  basin  should  be  scooped  out  around  the  tree  which 
will  hold  at  least  fifteen  gallons  of  water,  and  unless 
heavy  rains  should  intervene  to  fill  it  up,  water  should 
be  applied  either  by  bucket  or  by  irrigation.  The  fol- 
lowing day  draw  in  loose  soil  to  fill  up  this  basin,  reduc- 
ing it  to  a  fine  condition  of  tilth  and  do  not  tramp  in. 
Guard  against  setting  too  deeply,  but  allow  for  the 
settling  of  the  soil,  so  that  when  once  established  the 
tree  will  stand  about  as  it  did  at  the  time  of  removal 
from  the  nursery  rows,  or  at  the  outside  not  more  than 
three  inches  below  the  surface  of  the  soil.  In  the  hot 
interior  valleys  of  this  state,  it  is  also  very  important 
to  protect  the  trunks  with  tree-protectors  until  they  can. 
supply  their  own  shade. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


BRINGING  AN  ORCHARD  OR  VINEYARD 
INTO  BEARING 

Just  in  the  proportion  that  the  orchard  receives  in- 
tensive and  intelligent  care,  will  it  give  corresponding 
returns  on  the  investment  of  capital,  time  and  labor. 
Above  all  things,  do  not  plant  too  many  varieties  if  you 
desire  to  be  a  factor  in  the  business.  As  an  illustration, 
it  is  a  mistake  to  have  a  different  variety  on  each  acre, 
for  when  this  orchard  comes  into  bearing  there  are  so 
many  varieties  and  so  limited  a  quantity  of  each  that 
the  commercial  packer  of  dried  or  canned  fruits  does 
not  feel  inclined  to  pay  what  the  fruit  is  worth,  because 
there  is  not  enough  of  any  one  kind  to  make  it  an  object 
for  him  to  handle  it. 

The  handling  and  marketing  of  fruit  has  assumed 
such  vast  proportions  that  there  are  always  commercial 
institutions  eager  enough  to  enter  a  new  field  and  ex- 
ploit it  as  soon  as  the  production  is  large  enough  to  en- 
courage the  building  of  packing  houses  for  the  handling 
of  any  particular  product.  Another  serious  mistake  on 
the  part  of  many  growers  is  to  endeavor  ^o  harvest  big 
crops  when  their  trees  are  only  two  years  old.  This 
is  an  unwise  policy  and  in  many  cases  sacrifices  the 
tree,  resulting  in  its  not  producing  profitable  crops 
when  it  should  be  in  its  prime,  and  in  consequence  of 
this  requiring  extraordinary  care  to  restore  it  to  its 
proper  vigor.  Tlie  care  bestowed  for  the  first  two 
or  three  years  in  cultivating,  pruning  and  irrigating, 
where  the  rainfall  is  insufficient  to  carry  the  trees 
through  the  long  dry  summer  months,  is  the  foundation 
for  the  upbuilding  of  an  orchard  which  will  redound  to 
the  credit  of  the  owner  and  give  him  ample  returns  for 
his  intelligent  care  and  years  of  hard  work. 

Next  to  the  thorough  cultivation  there  is  nothing 
which  is  more  vital  to  the  life  of  a  tree  than  proper 
irrigation.  It  is  difficult  to  lay  down  specific  rules  on 
this  point,  but  there  are  basic  ones  which  can  generally 
be  observed  in  the  handling  of  most  deciduous  trees, 
with  some  exceptions,  and  instructions  pertaining  to 
such  cases  will  be.  dwelt  on  under  proper  heads. 

MUST  BE  CUT  BACK 

After  a  tree  is  set  never  fail  to  cut  it  back.  This  is 
now  the  general  practice  among  the  most  successful 
orchardists  throughout  California,  and  is  the  result  of 
years  of  experience*  The  following  winter  from  three  to 
four  branches,  properly  distributed  around  the  body  of 
the  tree,  should  be  allowed  to  remain  to  form  the  head, 
and  each  one  of  these  branches  should  have  at  least 
one-half  of  their  growth  removed,  cutting  away  all 
laterals  from  them  also.  These  leaders  will  eventually 
form  the  framework  of  the  tree.  The  first  year's 
pruning  will  result  in  the  trees  making  an  immense 
growth  and  also  induce  them  to  grow  stocky.  The 
second  winter  heavy  thinning  will  have  to  be  fol- 
lowed and  the  pruning  should  be  done  with  a  view  of 
causing  the  framework  branches  to  spread  out.  There 
may  be  some  variation  from  these  instructions,  there- 
fore it  is  advisable  to  read  carefully  the  information 
given  under  each  head.  The  many  advantages  of  this 
method  of  pruning  are :  (1 )  it  makes  a  low-crowned  and 
a  more  stocky  tree,  affording  an  umbrageous  head,  and 


thus  protecting  it  from  the  hot  rays  of  the  scorching 
summer  sun;  (2)  it  enhances  the  carrying  capacity  of 
the  tree,  thus  avoiding  artificial  props  when  maturing 
a  crop  of  fruit;  (3)  it  expedites  the  harvesting  of  the 
crop  by  rendering  it  more  accessible  to  the  pickers, 
thus  economizing  time  and  expense;  (4)  it  prolongs  the 
life  of  the  tree  by  reason  of  conserving  its  vital  forces 
and  rendering  it  less  liable  to  damage  in  the  breaking 
of  limbs  and  taxing  its  strength  by  carrying  its  fruits 
"close  in." 

IRRIGATION 

During  the  first  season  for  deciduous  trees  in  districts 
where  irrigation  is  practised,  water  should  be  applied 
not  less  than  four  times  during  the  year.  For  the  first 
two  years  it  is  not  necessary  to  irrigate  all  of  the  ground 
between  the  rows.  A  space  six  feet  wide  will  answer  the 
necessary  requirements  in  nearly  all  cases. 

The  planter  should  never  lose  sight  of  one  important 
fact,  and  that  is,  if  the  orchard  or  vineyard  can  be 
maintained  in  a  thrifty,  vigorous  condition  thorough 
cultivation  is  recommended  as  being  preferable  to  an 
irrigation. 

THE  APPLE 

In  the  temperate  zone  no  variety  of  fruit  is  so  widely 
distributed  or  has  been  more  extensively  planted  than 
the  apple.  The  list  of  varieties  is  amazing.  "Down- 
ing's  Fruits"  alone  lists  about  3500  sorts. 

Varieties  are  variable  as  to  localities,  and  in  planting 
in  sections  where  apple  culture  is  pursued  commercially 
the  advice  -as  to  the  best  varieties  to  plant  should  be 
sought  from  experienced  growers.  Broadly  speaking, 
the  hot  interior  valleys  are  not  suitable  for  commercial 
apple  culture,  on  a  large  scale,  as  the  very  rapid  and 
early  maturing  of  the  fruit  does  not  seem  to  be  con- 
ducive to  long-keeping,  as  found  in  tried  localities  where 
.conditions  are  favorable  for  perfecting  fruit  having 
long-keeping  qualities.  Nevertheless,  it  is  a  fact  that 
where  moisture  is  readily  maintained  in  a  soil  by  either 
irrigation  or  by  sub-irrigation,  many  varieties  are  of 
such  exceptionally  large  size,  present  so  fine  an  appear- 
ance and  are  of  such  excellent  flavor  that  more  attention 
should  be  given  to  their  culture. 

SOIL  AND  SITUATION 

The  best  soil  for  this  fruit  is  a  deep,  rich  loam  which 
will  allow  the  free  extension  of  the  roots  and  is  exempt 
from  stagnant  water.  An  extremely  light  soil  should  be 
avoided.  Apples  do  exceedingly  well  in  all  the  coast 
counties,  as  well  as  in  the  upper  foothills  and  mountains 
of  the  Sierra  Nevada.  In  adjacent  states  and  terri- 
tories to  the  north  and  east,  apple  culture  is  more  gen- 
eral, and  may  be  safely  followed  whereverHhe  soil  and 
climate  is  favorable.  The  keeping  qualities  and  the 
flavor  and  coloring  of  our  mountain-grown  apples  at 
elevations  of  3000  to  5000  feet  or  more,  are  indeed  hard 
to  surpass. 

California's  great  apple  center  is  located  in  the 
vicinity  of  Watsonville.  There  exists  in  that  section 
a  combination  of  soil  and  climate  which  causes  'apples 
not  only  to  be  of  good  quality  but  excellent  keepers. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


POINTS  TO  BE   OBSERVED 

It  is  the  consensus  of  opinion  among  commercial 
growers  that  trees  should  be  planted  from  twenty-five 
to  thirty  feet  apart  in  orchard  form.  Crab  apples 
may  be  planted  closer.  Trees  should  be  .cut  back  to 
twenty  inches  from  the  top  of  the  ground  after  being 
set,  except  in  the  higher  altitudes,  where  the  snow  in 
settling  would  cause  the  branches  to  break  off,  thus 
making  it  advisable  to  head  the  trees  at  not  less  than 
two  feet  from  the  ground.  Apples  are  very  much  sub- 
ject to  sun  scald  and  to  the  attack  of  the  flat-headed 
borer  the  first  few  years  after  trees  are  set  out.  When 
headed  low,  protected  with  tree  protectors,  permitting 
of  free  circulation  of  air,  and  by  giving  the  stem  a  coat- 
ing of  whitewash  to  which  has  been  added  soap  and 
crude  carbolic  acid,  little  danger  need  be  apprehended 
from  either  of  these  evils.  The  wash  is  made  in  the  fol- 
lowing manner:  Dissolve  one-half  gallon  of  soft  soap 
in  one-half  gallon  of  hot  water,  adding  one-fourth  pint 
of  crude  carbolic  acid.  When  mixing  add  five  gallons 
of  hot  water  and  enough  lime  to  make  a  mixture  the 
consistency  of  paint. 

SHAPING  THE  TREE 

In  forming  the  head  of  the  tree  no  branches  closer 
than  one  foot  from  the  surface  of  the  ground  should  be 
allowed  to  grow.  The  following  winter  they  should  be 
cut  back  at  least  one-half  and  thinned  out  so  as  not  to 
leave  more  than  four  branches  to  form  the  framework, 
and  these  should  be  distributed  in  such  a  manner  as  not 
to  crowd  one  another  as  the  tree  develops.  Each  one 


A  four-year-old  Apple  tree  with  a  well  balanced  head. 


The  same  tree  with  the  leaders  and  laterals  shortened  in. 
It  has  reached  the  point  where  it  is  in  shape  to  produce  a 
crop  of  fruit. 

of  these  branches  should  be  regarded  as  a  subdivision 
to  maintain  the  wood  supply  to  eventually  form  a  per- 
fectly vase-formed  tree.  The  second  winter  not  more 
than  two  laterals  should  be  allowed  to  grow  from  the 
framework  branches,  and  if  there  is  a  tendency  to 
crowd,  not  more  than  one,  and  its  growth  should  again 
be  shortened  very  severely.  The  tendency  as  far  as 
possible  should  be  to  prune  to  an  outside  bud  for  the 
first  two  winters'  pruning.  With  the  head  now  prac- 
tically formed,  the  orchardist  must  shape  the  tree  in 
accordance  with  its 'development,  leaving  and  shorten- 
ing in  the  inside  laterals  if  they  show  a  tendency  to 
spread  out,  or  if  the  inclination  is  to  assume  too  upright 
a  form,  cause  them  to  spread  by  leaving  the  outside 
laterals.  The  cutting  back  of  the  trees  and  judicious 
thinning  prevent  the  long  bare  branches  so  noticeable 
in  trees  which  have  not  been  systematically  pruned 
every  winter.  The  effect  of  this  method  of  pruning  is 
to  cause  the  structural  branches  to  be  sturdier,  the  load 
of  fruit  is  carried  closer  to  the  trunk  and  even  with  a 
very  heavy  crop  of  fruit  the  necessity  of  propping  is 
eliminated  very  largely.  Props  are  an  expensive  item 
and  they  also  interfere  very  materially  with  the  harvest- 
ing of  the  crop,  so  that  a  method  of  pruning  which  will 
dispense  with  them  is  worthy  of  very  careful  consid- 
eration. 

ROOTS 

The  stock  generally  used  for  budding  or  grafting  the 
apple  is  Mains  communis,  common  apple.    These  stocks 


10 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


are  raised  from  seed.  Much  interest  has  been  mani- 
fested in  the  Wooly  Aphis  resistant  roots.  After  twenty 
years  of  careful  experimental  work,  it  has  been  fully 
demonstrated  that  the  Northern  Spy  root  is  absolutely 
resistent  to  the  attacks  of  this  insect.  Trees  growing  in 
badly  infested  districts  are  entirely  free  from  it,  thus 
proving  conclusively  the  value  of  the  Northern  Spy 
root.  It  is  only  reasonable  to  suppose  that  these  trees 
should  command  a  higher  figure  than  those  budded  on 
the  seedlings,  when  the  additional  expense  incurred  in 
handling  is  taken  into  consideration.  In  the  first  place 
it  is  necessary  to  have  mother  trees  growing  in  the 
nursery  to  supply  a  crop  of  roots.  They  are  permitted 
to  grow  for  several  years,  when  they  are  dug  up  and  all 
the  roots  fit  for  grafting  are  cut  off  and  the  trees  are 
again  planted  for  the  purpose  of  supplying  another  crop 
of  roots.  These  roots  are  in  turn  grafted  with  Northern 
Spy  scions  and  the  grafts  are  planted  in  beds.  The  fol- 
lowing year  they  are  transplanted  to  nursery  rows  and 
the  Northern  Spy  stock  is  budded.  The  several  opera- 
tions, therefore,  extend  over  a  period  of  three  years 
before  the  trees  are  marketable.  It  is  practicable  to 
produce  dwarf  apple  trees  by  budding  them  on  dwarf 
apple  stocks,  commonly  known  as  Paradise  or  Doucin 
stocks.  These  are  produced  by  layering.  The  demand 
for  apples  on  this  stock  is  very  limited.  Trees  grown 
on  this  root  may  be  planted  as  close  as  six  feet  apart. 
They  come  into  bearing  within  three  years  after  plant- 
ing. For  gardens  or  for  suburban  homes  they  will  prove 
to  be  a  valuable  acquisition. 

THINNING 

Fruit  growers  fully  realize  that  it  is  just  as  important 
to  thin  their  apples  as  any  other  class  of  fruit.  Where 
apples  are  allowed  to  grow  in  bunches  many  of  them 
are  undersized,  and  in  addition  to  this,  the  difficulty  of 
thoroughly  spraying  the  fruits  touching  each  other 
gives  the  codlin  moth  a  good  chance  to  get  in  its  work, 
thus  causing  a  good  part  of  the  crop  to  be  wormy.  If 
there  was  no  other  incentive,  this  alone  should  be  a 
sufficient  inducement  to  thin.  The  life  of  the  tree  is 
conserved  by  relieving  it  of  its  heavy  burden  of  fruit. 

GATHERING  AND  STORING 

This  is  a  problem  which  confronts  every  grower  of 
fruit.  The  safe  rule  is  to  gather  summer  and  early  fall 
apples  when  they  have  attained  full  color  and  before 
they  become  soft.  Care  should  be  exercised  not  to 
break  out  the  stem.  Winter  apples  should  be  mature 
but  not  ripe.  When  the  seeds  show  that  they  are  turn- 
ing slightly  brown,  it  is  a  safe  indication  that  the  fruit 
is  ready  to  pick.  The  external  appearance  of  the  fruit 
is  usually  a  good  guide  as  to  the  time  of  gathering.  All 
late  winter  varieties  should  be  gathered  when  too  hard 
to  yield  to  the  pressure  of  the  thumb  and  always  before 
heavy  autumn  frosts.  An  old  plan,  and  one  which  is 
followed  even  to  this  day  by  many  orchardists,  is  to 
pile  winter  apples  under  the  trees  covering  them  with 
leaves,  allowing  the  rains  to  fall  on  them.  For  family 
use  there  is  no  serious  objection  to  this  method,  for  in 


nearly  all  cases  the  apples  when  taken  from  their  cover- 
ing are  smooth  and  plump.  The  commercial  practice- 
is  to  pick  and  sort  the  apples,  carefully  removing  all 
diseased  and  inferior  fruits,  place  them  loose  in  boxes 
and  then  transfer  to  a  fruit  house.  This  should  be  con- 
structed so  that  a  fairly  uniform  temperature  is  main- 
tained. The  ventilation  should  be  good  and  the  boxes 
should  be  stacked  so  that  there  is  a  circulation  of  air. 
In  the  mountains,  where  stone  is  to  be  had  readily, 
there  is  no  better  material  than  this  for  an  apple  house, 
as  it  resists  any  sudden  changes  in  temperature. 

It  is  quite  true  that  the  apple  will  withstand  rough 
handling  far  better  than  many  other  fruits,  but  even 
admitting  this  fact,  it  is  nevertheless  just  as  much  to 
the  interest  of  the  grower  to  give  every  attention  to  all 
the  details  necessary  to  the  careful  handling  of  apples 
as  with  any  other  class  of  fruit. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Alexander,  Arkansas  Black,  Black  Ben,  Delicious, 
Early  Harvest,  Esopus  Spitzenburg,  Gravenstein,  Jona- 
than, Red  Astrachan,  Rome  Beauty,  Smith's  Cider, 
Stayman's  Winesap,  White  Astrachan.  White  Winter 
Pearmain,  Winesap,  Yellow  Bellflower,  Yellow  New- 
town  Pippin. 

Period  of  ripening  of  varieties  in  an  average  apple 
section.  Listed  in  the  order  in  which  they  ripen. 

June 

Red  June,  Red  Astrachan,  White  Astrachan,  Duchess 
of  Oldenburg. 

July 

Early  Harvest,  Alexander,  Gravenstein. 

August 
Maiden's  Blush,  Red  Beitigheimer. 

September 
Fameuse,  King  of  Tompkins  County,  Bismarck. 

October 

Jonathan,  Rhode  Island  Greening,  Rambo,  Red 
Bellflower  or  Marshall  Red,  Yellow  Bellflower,  Winter 
Banana,  King  David. 

-  '*\'*"    --V*.  .'V* 

November 

Ben  Davis,  Gano  of  Black  Ben,  Arkansas  Beauty, 
Arkansas  Black,  Baldwin,  Delicious,  Esopus  Spitzen- 
burg, Grimes  Golden  Pippin,  Lawyer,  Mammoth  Black 
Twig,  Missouri  Pippin,  Northern  Spy,  Rome  Beauty, 
Smith's  Cider,  Stayman's  Winesap,  White  Winter 
Pearmain,  Winesap,  Yellow  Newtown  Pippin. 

CRAB  APPLES 

August 
Red  Siberian,  Hyslop,  Yellow  Siberian. 

September 
Whitney  No.  20,  Transcendent. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


11 


THE  PEAR 

The  pear  is  a  fruit  cultivated  throughout  California 
and  the  Pacific  States  generally,  extending  into  Mexico. 
Like  the  apple,  there  is  an  endless  list  of  varieties. 
Unlike  any  other  variety  of  fruit  we  grow,  there  is  one 
variety,  the  Bartlett,  which  may  well  be  termed  the 
King  of  Pears,  because  it  meets  every  demand  for 
shipping,  canning  and  drying.  It  has  held  its  sway  as 
the  leading,  all-purpose  pear  for  a  great  many  years, 
and  where  it  can  be  grown  successfully,  it  will  undoubt- 
edly continue  to  do  so  for  many  years  to  come.  It 
is  of  English  origin  and  dates  back  to  the  year  1770. 
Its  correct  name  is  Williams'  Bonchretin,  which  name 
was  lost  after  it  was  introduced  into  the  United  States. 
Enoch  Bartlett,  of  Boston,  Mass.,  cultivated  and  dis- 
tributed it  and  it  took  his  name. 

There  are  other  desirable  varieties,  of  course,  many 
of  which  are  very  meritorious  and  worthy  of  being  cul- 
tivated. As  fruit  growing  develops,  experience  and 
market  conditions  will  cause  a  number  of  varieties  to 
be  reduced  to  a  point  where  only  those  having  qualities 
that  will  make  them  valuable  commercially  will  be 
grown  to  any  extent.  The  elimination  of  all  varieties 
of  pears  not  up  to  a  standard  perfection,  making  it 
profitable  for  the  commercial  fruit  grower  to  produce 
them,  is  the  order  of  the  day. 


SOIL  AND  SITUATION 

It  does  well  in  all  soils  with  the  exception  of  those 
which  are  extremely  sandy.  It  thrives  better  in  alkali 
soils  than  probably  any  other  variety  of  deciduous 
fruit  and  therefore  is  being  planted  in  vineyards  and 
orchards  where  the  vines  and  trees  have  been  killed. 
If  there  is  any  one  thing  that  has  militated  against  the 
planting  of  pears  on  an  extensive  scale  in  the  great  in- 
terior valleys  of  California,  it  has  been  the  blight.  Like 
all  fungus  diseases,  its  control  has  been  a  very  difficult 
matter  and  it  is  only  by  the  utmost  care  and  vigilance 
on  the  part  of  the  grower  in  cutting  out  the  diseased 
sections  of  the  trees  and  by  the  disinfection  of  the  prun- 
ing tools  that  the  disease  can  be  controlled.  In  all  the 


The  method  of  pruning  a  one-year-old  orchard  pear  tree. 
Note  the  simple  device  used  for  pushing  the  framework 
branches  away  from  the  body  of  the  tree. 


A  three-year-old  Bartlett  Pear  tree.  Note  the  strong  leader 
in  center  and  numerous  laterals.  In  later  years,  when 
the  tree  is  heavily  laden  with  fruit,  the  laterals  are  pre- 
vented from  breaking  by  supporting  them  with  wire 
fastened  to  the  strong  leader. 

coast  counties  of  California,  from  the  County  of  Mon- 
terey northward  and  west  to  the  Coast  Range,  climatic 
conditions  are  very  favorable  for  the  growing  of  the 
very  finest  pears,  bounteous  crops  being  harvested  an- 
nually. In  these  sections  the  blight  has  never  been  con- 
sidered a  menace,  because  there  are  orchards  in  the 
Counties  of  Alameda,  Santa  Clara  and  Solano,  fifty 
years  old  which  are  vigorous  and  healthy.  Experience 
and  actual  demonstration  are,  after  all,  the  best  answer 
to  any  argument  that  might  be  presented  against  the 
growing  of  pears  in  the  sections  referred  to. 

By  planting  varieties  which  ripen  in  succession  in 
the  early  summer  months  until  the  late  fall  one  may 
have  pears  on  th3  table  during  the  entire  year. 


12 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


DISTANCES  APART  AND  STOCKS 

Trees  must  have  ample  room  for  develop- 
ment if  crops  of  any  consequence  are  to  be  har- 
vested from  them  when  they  reach  a  bearing  age. 

Growers  are  becoming  more  impressed  with  this 
fact  than  ever  before.  Crowding  a  lot  of  trees 
on  an  acre  does  not  mean  more  fruit.  As  an  actual 
fact  it  not  only  means  less,  but  in  addition  to 
this  the  vitality  of  the  tree  is  impaired  to  such 
an  extent  that  it  never  reaches  its  prime  vigor. 
Twenty  feet  apart  is  entirely  too  close  to  plant 
pears  on  pear  root;  never  closer  than  twenty- 
four  feet  is  better,  and  in  very  strong,  deep 
alluvial  soils,  well  supplied  with  moisture,  there 
will  be  no  objection  to  even  planting  thirty  feet 
apart.  Pears  on  quince  root  may  be  planted 
much  closer,  because  the  quince  has  a  decidedly 
dwarfing  tendency  on  the  tree.  -  Not  only  has  it 
this  effect  but  it  also  causes  the  trees  to  come 
into  bearing  when  three  years  old  and  holds  them 
in  check  to  a  great  extent  without  impairing  their 
vitality.  Trees  worked  on  quince  are  well  adapted 
for  use  in  small  gardens  where  there  is  not  much 
room.  For  orchard  planting  trees  should  not 
be  set  closer  than  fifteen  feet  apart.  That  the 
trees  are  long-lived  and  that  a  crop  failure  is  almost 
unknown  is  aptly  illustrated  by  the  famous  A.  Block 
orchards  in  Santa  Clara,  where  the  old  monarchs, 
fifty  years  old  and  two  feet  in  diameter,  still  con- 


A  five-year-old  Bartlett  Pear  tree  with  head  formed  and 
well  supplied  with  fruit  spurs. 


A  general  view  of  an  eight-year-old  Bartlett  Pear  orchard,  pruned 
along  the  lines  recommended. 


tinue  to  bear  heavy  crops  of  fruit  annually.  Pears 
on  quince  root  are  very  much  more  expensive  to 
grow  than  a  pear  on  pear  root.  First  of  all,  the  quince 
trees  must  be  grown  from  cuttings.  These  are  planted 
in  beds  and  the  following  winter  they  are  planted  in 
nursery  rows.  Many  varieties  of  pear  lack  affinity  with 
the  quince  root  and  if  budded  directly  on  it,  the  bud 
will  frequently  break  off  in  the  nursery  rows  should 
there  be  a  high  wind.  When  planted  in  the  orchard, 
the  trees  may  fall  over  at  any  time.  The  only  safe  plan, 
then,  to  follow,  is  to  secure  trees  that  have  been  double- 
worked.  This  means  that  the  Beurre  Hardy,  which 
makes  a  better  union  on  the  quince  than  any  other 
variety  of  pear,  is  first  budded  on  this  stock  and  when 
the  tree  is  grown  it  is  in  turn  budded  to  any  variety  of 
pear  desired.  Four  years  of  constant  care  are  required, 
therefore,  before  the  trees  are  ready  for  sale. 

All  the  old  pear  orchards  in  California  are  on  the 
French  pear  root.  This  is  being  superseded  very 
rapidly  by  the  Japanese  pear,  because  of  its  wider 
adaptability  and  on  account  of  its  being  less  subject  to 
the  attack  of  blight.  P^ven  the  root  of  the  French  pear 
is  attacked  by  blight.  This  is,  in  itself,  a  bad  feature 
which  should  discourage  the  use  of  this  stock  in  all 
future  plantings. 

PRUNING  AND  SHAPING 

The  very  marked  tendency  of  the  pear  to  send  its 
branches  straight  up  requires  a  method  of  pruning 
which  not  only  holds  the  tree  under  control  but  will 
promote  fruit  spurs  from  the  point  where  the  frame- 
work branches  diverge  from  the  body  of  the  tree  to  the 
very  top.  It  goes  without  argument  that  this  is  the 
desideratum  which  every  pear  grower  would  like  to 
achieve. 

For  a  number  of  years,  while  passing  in  the  train  from 
Lawrence  station  to  San  Jose  on  the  Southern  Pacific 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


13 


Railroad,  my  attention  was  directed  to  the  Bartlett 
pear  orchard  of  Bracher  Bros.,  two  miles  from  the 
aforesaid  station.  The  symmetry  of  the  trees  gave  evi- 
dence that  the  pruning  was  being  carried  on  along  lines 
which  not  only  maintained  active  growth  in  the  trees 
but  strong,  vigorous  fruit  spurs,  capable  of  carrying  very 
heavy  crops.  The  oldest  orchard  is  over  twenty-five 
years  of  age.  It  is  in  the  very  best  of  condition,  as  far 


looked;  in  other  words,  the  branches  should  be  forced 
outward  without  interfering  with  their  upward  course. 
In  1920  the  current  season's  growth  on  these  branches 
should  be  pruned  back  at  least  one-half,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  terminal,  which  should  have  its  growth 
shortened  one-third.  A  few  side  limbs  should  be 
allowed  to  remain,  not  overlooking  the  fact  that  they 
should  be  shortened  in.  In  1921  the  same  method 


Irrigating  a  young  pear  orchard  by  the  furrow  system.    This  method  of  only  partly  covering  the  ground  with  water 
answers  the  purpose  very  well  while  the  trees  are  young. 


as  vigor  and  fruitfulness -is  concerned  and  fully  exem- 
plifies the  rare  good  judgment  exercised  in  pruning. 
It  is  not  uncommon  for  the  one-year-old  budded  pear 
trees  in  nursery  rows  to  attain  a  height  of  ten  feet. 
Cut  off  this  top,  so  that  when  the  tree  is  set  it  will  not 
stand  more  than  twenty  inches  from  the  ground.  Well- 
grown  pear  trees  have  plump  buds  all  the  way  up  the 
stem,  every  one  of  which  will  start.  This,  therefore, 
should  eliminate  any  doubt  in  the  mind  of  the  grower 
that  the  tree  will  not  start  if  cut  back  as  severely  as  this. 
In  midsummer  just  before  the  wood  begins  to  harden, 
from  four  to  five  branches,  well  distributed  around  the 
tree,  should  be  selected  and  strips  of  wood  slightly 
notched  and  from  three  to  six  inches  long,  should  be 
used  to  push  the  branches  away  from  the  body  of  the 
tree.  These  will  eventually  be  the  framework  branches, 
and  the  idea  of  pushing  them  out  is  to  open  up  the  tree 
tc  develop!  the  goblet  form. 

For  the  sake  of  argument  let  us  consider  that  the  or- 
chard to  be  pruned  was  planted  in  February,  1918.  In 
January,  1919,  four  branches  regularly  distributed 
around  the  stem  of  the  tree  should  be  selected,  counting 
from  the  terminal  one  at  the  tip  end  to  constitute  what 
will  eventually  be  the  head  of  the  tree.  All  of  these 
branches  must  be  cut  back  to  at  least  six  inches.  If 
any  of  them  show  a  tendency  to  hug  too  closely  to  the 
body  of  the  tree,  the  wooden  braces  should  not  be  over- 


of  shortening  in  the  leaders  and  thinning  them  where 
necessary  should  be  followed,  increasing  the  side  limbs 
to  balance  the  tree,  and  shortening  them  in.  In  1922 
the  same  method  of  shortening  in  and  building  up 
the  frame  of  the  tree  should  be  followed.  In  later 
years  the  general  policy  of  pruning  continues,  with 
the  only  alternative  that  its  extent  is  regulated  by 
the  growth  of  the  tree.  This  method  of  pruning  and 
thinning  results  in  making  a  fine  symmetrical,  vig- 
orous tree  with  an  even  distribution  of  fruit  spurs 
throughout.  The  fruit  is  evenly  distributed  over  the 
entire  tree  and  in  years  of  enormous  crops  the  leader 
is  used  as  a  support  to  string  wires  to  the  lateral 
branches  and  to  prevent  them  breaking  down  with 
their  load  of  fruit. 

THINNING 

Practically  the  same  reasons  for  thinning  the  apple 
are  applicable  to  the  pear.  It  is  of  the  utmost  impor- 
tance to  thin  pears  because  of  their  very  marked  ten- 
dency to  grow  in  bunches.  Another  point,  particularly 
with  the  Bartlett,  which  is  shipped  more  largely  than 
any  other  variety,  is  "the  very  decided  advantage  of 
having  early  fruit  because  it  has  attained  its  size,  thus 
securing  the  benefit  of  the  very  highest  prices.  Less 
wormy  fruit,  greater  longevity  of  the  tree,  because  its 
vital  forces  are  not  drained,  are  most  excellent  reasons 


14 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'   GUIDE 


for  doing  this  work  whenever  it  is  necessary.  Bear  in 
mind  that  it  is  not  advisable  to  thin  until  the  fruit  is 
well  set. 

GATHERING  AND  RIPENING 

Pears,  to  secure  the  very  best  in  them  and  high-class 
delicious  fruit,  should  never  be  allowed  to  ripen  on  the 
tree.  Tree-ripened  fruit  is  mealy,  without  juice,  and 
is,  in  fact,  entirely  lacking  in  quality.  The  time  to 
gather  is  indicated  by  the  change  in  color  from  the  de- 
cided green  stage  and  the  fact  that  when  the  pear  is 
elevated  slightly  its  stem  parts  readily  from  the  branch 
to  which  it  is  attached.  One  of  the  great  advantages 
in  favor  of  the  Bartlett  is  the  fact  that  it  can  be  picked 
as  soon  as  it  reaches  the  standard  size  of  two  and  a 
quarter  inches,  packed  in  boxes,  and  shipped  to  the 
eastern  markets,  maturing  en  route  and  being  ready  for 
sale  as  soon  as  it  reaches  its  destination.  It  is  out  of  the 
question  to  handle  winter  pears  like  apples.  They  must  be 
wrapped  and  packed  tight  in  boxes,  or  placed  in  drawers 
closed  tight  in  a  room  where  the  temperature  only  ranges 
from  sixty  to  seventy  degrees  Fahrenheit.  The  pear, 
not  having  the""  oily  skin  of  the  apple,  will  shrivel  up  in- 
stead of  ripening  when  exposed  to  the  air.  Pears  which 
have  been  properly  ripened  are  exceedingly  melting, 
buttery  and  juicy. 


The  drying  of  pears  is  a  very  important  industry  in 
many  sections  of  California.  The  fruit  is  allowed  to  re- 
main on  the  trees  until  it  has  attained  its  largest  size. 
The  pears  are  then  placed  on  trays  or  shelves  under 
cover,  and  as"  soon  as  they  show  color,  they  are  halved. 
A  loaded  car  of  trays  is  run  into  the  sulphur  house, 
where  they  are  exposed  to  the  fumes  of  burning  sulphur 
for  four  hours.  The  fruit  is  then  exposed  to  the  sun 
for  a  period  of  ten  days,  depending  on  the  weather. 
The  finest  product  is  very  inviting.  The  flesh  is  white 
while  the  skin  is  of  a  light  golden  color.  Lake  county 
has  a  reputation  for  producing  the  finest  dried  pears 
in  California.  One  of  the  advantages  of  drying  pears 
is  that  fruit  unfit  for  shipping  or  canning  can  be  used 
for  drying  by  cutting  out  the  defects. 

IRRIGATION 

No  absolute  rule  can  be  laid  down  for  irrigating. 
Where  irrigation  is  practised  at  least  from  two  to  three 
irrigations,  starting  in  May  and  continuing  up  to  Sep- 
tember, should  be  given  to  maintain  good  active  growth 
in  the  trees  for  the  first  few  years.  For  the  first 
three  years,  where  the  roots  are  confined  to  a  narrow 
space,  a  back  furrow  on  each  side  of  the  row  and  three  feet 
from  the  trees,  with  a  cross  check  six  feet  below  to  back 
up  the  water,  will  provide  all  the  water  that  is  necessary 


•  ps>«..^ 


These  old  monarchs  are  pear  trees  on  the  A.  Block  place  near  Santa  Clara.    These  trees  on  quince  root  are  only 
fifteen  feet  apart,  nevertheless  they  are  still  in  their  prime  and  are  constant  and  regular  bearers. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


15 


if  the  check  is  filled  up.  Thorough  and  frequent  culti- 
vation is  much  more  important  than  resorting  to  irri- 
gation. Cultivating  and  stirring  the  soil  causes  the 
roots  to  penetrate  deeply  for  moisture,  a  very  important 
and  vital  point.  As  the  trees  become  mature,  all  the 
ground  will  have  to  be  covered  when  irrigating,  either 
by  checking  or  by  having  the  water  run  in  furrows  and 
seeping  into  the  surrounding  soil. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Bartlett,  Beurre  Clairgeau,  Beurre  Hardy,  Doyenne 
<lu  ( \>mice,  Easter  Beurre,  Forelle  or  Trout,  Glou  Mor- 
ceau,  Howell,  Lawson,  P.  Barry,  Winter  Bartlett, 
Winter  Nelis, 

TIME  OF  RIPENING 

July 

Madeleine,  Lawson. 

August 

Bartlett,  Bloodgood,  Calpp's  Favorite,  Howell,  Sou- 
venir du  Congress,  B.  S.  Fox. 

September  . 

Beurre  Hardy,  Le  Conte,  Duchess  d'Angouleme, 
Seckel,  Flemish  Beauty,  Beurre  Clairgeau,  Rossney. 

October 

Beurre  Diel,  Doyenne  du  Cornice,  Kieffer,  Beurre 
Bosc,  Louis  Bonne  de  Jersey,  Beurre  d'Anjou,  Emile 
d'Heyst,  Forelle,  White  Doyenne,  Winter  Bartlett. 

November 

Dana's  Hovey,  Winter  Nelis,  Pound,  Easter  Beurre, 
P.  Parry,  Glou  Morceau,  Crocker  Bartlett. 

THE  CHERRY 

Strictly  speaking  the  sections  in  which  cherries  can 
be  grown  seem  to  be  limited  to  the  counties  adjacent  to 
the  San  Francisco  bay  region,  although  there  is  no 
doubt  that  in  many  of  the  counties  north  of  the  bay 
and  receiving  the  benefit  of  the  tempered  sea  air, 
the  growing  of  cherries  will  prove  to  be  a  profitable 
undertaking.  The  enormous  profits  realized  from  cherry 
orchards  and  the  popularity  of  the  fruit  in  the  east,  the 
very  excellent  keeping  qualities  of  many  of  the  varieties 
even  when  picked  quite  ripe,  present  a  series  of  reasons 
for  extending  the  field  for  the  planting  of  cherries  over 
a  greater  territorj'. 

Being  the  initial  stone  fruit  of  the  season  probably 
accounts  in  a  way  for  its  popularity. 

Exceptionally  fine  cherries  are  grown  in  Oregon  and 
Washington.  California's  advantage  over  these  two 
states  is  not  so  much  in  the  quality  of  the  fruit  as  it  is 
in  the  time  of  ripening.  Our  season  is  from  May  1st  to 
June  15th,  while  in  the  more  northern  states  the  season 
opens  on  the  latter  date  and  closes  about  July  15th.  In 
the  upper  San  Joaquin  valley,  notably  around  Stockton, 
in  many  sections  of  the  Sacramento  valley,  and  in  the 
foothill  sections  adjacent  thereto,  cherries  are  grown 
quite  successfully  in  the  alluvial  soils.  In  the  south 
half  of  the  San  Joaquin  valley  cherries  should  only  be 


A  two-year-old  Cherry  tree  cut  back  to  illustrate  method 
followed  of  thinning  and  cutting  back  the  leaders  to 
secure  a  well  balanced  head. 


planted  for  home  use,  giving  the  preference  to  the 
Morello  types.  Cherry  trees  should  be  planted  twenty- 
four  feet  apart  at  the  very  least,  and  on  exceptionally 
rich  soils,  thirty  feet  would  be  better. 

STOCKS  FOR  THE  CHERRY 

For  years  it  has  been  absolutely  fixed  in  the  minds  of 
planters,  and  many  of  them  experienced  growers,  that 
the  only  root  for  the  cherry  in  California  is  the  Mazzard 
(Cerasus  aviwri). 

According  to  all  reports,  the  Mahaleb  root  (Cerasus 
odorata),  which  is  extensively  used  in  the  east  for  grow- 
ing cherries,  would  not  do  in  California,  and  nursery- 
men, because  of  the  prevailing  prejudice,  have  hesitated 
to  use  it.  While  on  a  tour  of  investigation  in  Solano 
county,  I  found  to  my  surprise  in  the  Vacaville  district 
several  young  orchards  and  one  old  orchard  of  forty 
years  or  more  where  the  sweet  cherries  were  not  only 
very  thrifty,  but  were  producing  very  heavily  on  the 
Mahaleb  root.  One  of  the  most  experienced  growers 
in  the  valley,  Mr.  H.  A.  Bassford,  said  that  his  preference 
for  this  root  was  due  to  the  trees  being  longer  lived, 
greater  prolificness  and  the  evident  influence  of  this 
root  on  the  growth  of  the  tree. 

The  dwarfing  tendency  so  often  attributed  to  the 
Mahaleb  is  not  borne  out  by  observation;  on  the  con- 
trary, its  effect  is  to  give  the  tree  a  greater  bearing  sur- 
face and  its  influence  is  more  in  the  direction  of  pre- 
venting the  excessive  growth  of  the  branches.  Possibly 
the  loss  of  trees  which  many  growers  have  sustained 
through  sour  sap  may  be  due  to  the  use  of  the  Mazzard 


16 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  four-year-old  Cherry  tree  illustrating  method  of  pruning. 
A  typical  vase-formed  tree  well  supplied  with  fruit  spurs. 

root.  That  the  Mahaleb  is  a  more  vigorous  grower  and 
has  a  much  better  root  system  is  generally  recognized 
by  all  nurserymen. 

PRUNING 

It  is  simply  disheartening  to  see  some  of  the  un- 
pruned  cherry  orchards  in  Solano  county,  which  stands 
out  pre-eminently  as  the  most  important  cherry  sec- 
tion in  the  state  today.  Compare  the  quality  and 
quantity  of  fruit  produced  with  the  trees  that  have 
been  systematically  pruned,  and  the  whole  fallacy  not 
to  cut  a  cherry  tree  after  the  head  has  once  been  formed 
falls  to  the  ground. 

The  trees  should  be  headed  back  to  twenty  inches. 
Three  to  four  branches  should  be  allowed  to  grow  to 
form  the  head  of  the  tree,  and  these  should  be  distrib- 
uted in  such  a  manner  as  to  prevent  forks,  as  the  tree 
has  a  tendency  to  split  as  it  grows'  older.  The  first 
winter  these  branches  should  be  cut  back  one-half  and 
the  following  season  not  more  than  one  to  two  branches 
should  be  allowed  to  grow  from  those  left  the  first  year. 
The  third  season  the  new  growth  should  be  shortened 
in  about  the  same,  depending  on  the  growth,  and  some 
of  the  laterals  appearing  near  the  point  of  divergence 
from  the  main  stems  should  not  be  cut  off  but  merely 
shortened  in,  for  the  shade  they  furnish  is  one  of  the 
essential  features  in  the  development  of  the  young  trees. 
This  same  method  of  pruning  should  be  followed  until 
the  fifth  year.  In  after  years  the  cutting  should  be  less 
severe,  but  pruning,  unless  the  trees  should  show  too 
much  of  a  tendency  to  spread  out,  should  continue 
every  j-ear.  This  promotes  fruit  spurs  on  the  large  as 


well  as  on  the  smaller  branches,  and  in  harvesting  a 
crop  the  even  distribution  of  the  cherries  from  the 
bottom  to  the  top  of  the  tree  cannot  but  help  bring 
about  a  feeling  of  pride  in  the  mind  of  the  grower  over 
the  results  obtained.  There  are  cherry  trees  in  the 
Ulatis  Ranch  Property  near  Vacaville,  managed  by  Mr. 
H.  A.  Bassford,  where  with  one  or  two  exceptions,  one 
of  the  cherry  orchards  now  fifteen  years  old,  consisting 
of  Bing,  Lambert,  Royal  Ann,  Black  Tartarian,  has 
been  pruned  annually.  The  trees  in  this  particular 
orchard  are  simply  beauties.  The  Gummosis,  a  gum 
disease,  has  been  overcome  in  this  orchard  by  slashing 
the  body  and  framework  branches  every  other  year  in 
November. 

The  placing  of  a  colony  of  bees  in  this  orchard  has 
had  a  decided  influence  on  its  bearing  qualities.  Not 
only  do  they  benefit  the  cherries  but  undoubtedly  are 
responsible  for  the  splendid  crops  of  other  fruits  which 
are  harvested  annually  on  this  large  fruit  ranch. 

I  believe  the  placing  of  a  colony  of  bees  in  any  or- 
chard will  be  found  a  splendid  investment. 

GATHERING 

Great  care  should  be  exercised  not  to  pull  the  cherries 
from  the  stalks  when  gathering.  Several  hundred  car- 
loads are  shipped  from  California  to  eastern  markets 
annually.  The  cherries  are  either  packed  in  pound  car- 
tons or  in  rows  in  flat  boxes  of  ten  pounds  each.  The 
fruit  is  picked  when  it  is  mature  and,  if  carefully  handled, 
invariably  reaches  its  destination  in  prime  condition. 
When  gathered  for  market  or  transportation  on  distant 
shipments  cherries  should  be  gathered  only  when  per- 
fectly dry.  For  table  use  the  flavor  is  very  much 
enhanced  by  placing  the  fruit  for  an  hour  or  so  in  a 


This  Cherry  tree  is  six  years  old.  Numerous  fruit  spurs  on 
the  well  balanced  tree  fully  demonstrate  the  advisability 
of  pruning  the  Cherry  annually. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


17 


Trees  like  these  make  one  envious  of  the  owner  of  this  magnificent  orchard.    Nots  the  even  distribution  of  blossoms. 


refrigerator  and  bringing  them  on  the  table  cool    with 
dewdrops  standing  upon  them. 

IRRIGATION 

Irrigation  is  a  very  important  factor  in  the  develop- 
ment of  a  cherrv  orchard.     In  California,  in  the  very 


This  is  the  result  of  allowing  the  Cherry  tree  to  grow  with- 
out checking  the  framework  branches.  They  are  badly 
crowded  where  they  started  from  the  body  of  the  tree. 
The  long,  straight  stems  indicate  very  plainly  the  mistake 
made  in  not  checking  them  when  in  the  formative  stage 
of  growth. 


best  cherry  sections,  in  years  of  limited  rainfall,  if  the 
necessary  moisture  to  sustain  the  trees  is  not  supplied 
to  them,  they  may  suffer  so  severely  that  they  may  die. 
The  cherry  is  an  extremely  sensitive  tree  but  where 
soil  and  climatic  conditions  are  favorable,  it  is  exceed- 
ingly profitable  if  given  proper  care. 

The  lack  of  rainfall  in  California  is  a  problem 
which  frequently  confronts  the  fruit  grower.  In  such 
seasons,  in  order  to  maintain  the  trees  in  thrift}-  condi- 
tion, it  is  necessary  to  apply  water  artificially  during 
the  growing  season. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Bing,  Black  Tartarian,  Early  Purple  Guinge,  Lam- 
bert, Lewelling,  Napoleon  Bigarreau. 

TIME  OF  RIPENING  IN  A  CHERRY  SECTION 

May 

Early  Purple  Guigne,  Abundance,  Chapman,  Bur- 
bank,  Knight's  Early  Black. 

June 

Belle  d'Orleans,  Rockport  Bigarreau,  Black  Tar- 
tarian, Reine  Hortense,  Burr's  Seedling,- Ekon,  Black 
Eagle,  Centennial,  Governor  Wood,  Great  Bigarreau, 
Napoleon  Bigarreau,  Yellow  Spanish,  Ostheimer 
Wei<*hsel,  Bing,  Lambert,  Schmidt's  Bigarreau. 

July 

Early  Richmond,  Lewelling,  Montmorency. 


18 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


THE  PLUM 

The  plum  in  its  geographical  distribution  on  this 
coast,  particularly  in  California,  covers  a  wide  range 
of  soils  and  climates,  being  both  thrifty  along  the  coast 
regions  and  the  interior  valleys,  and  well  up  into  the 
foothills.  Indeed,  so  wide  is  its  range  that  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  every  county  in  the  state  boasts  of  its  plum 
orchards.  The  very  fact  that  the  plum  has  such  a  wide 
range  of  usage  should  cause  plums  to  be  more  widely 
planted  than  they  have  been  in  recent  years.  It  is  very 
rarely  indeed  that  there  is  a  failure  of  a  crop,  and  this 
is  largely  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  practically  all 
the  varieties,  with  the  exception  of  some  of  the  Japanese 
types,  flower  late  in  the  spring  when  all  danger  from 
frost  is  over. 

There  are  two  distinct  lines  in  the  classification  of 
plums:  those  which  are  especially  shipping  sorts  and 
the  other  types  which  are  primarily  used  for  canning. 
The  very  fact  that  plums  may  be  picked  considerably 
riper  than  many  other  fruits  makes  them  very  valuable 
for  long  distance  shipments,  due  to  their  fine  shipping 
qualities.  Plums  need  not  be  peeled  when  canned,  a 
great  point  in  their  favor  as  a  preserving  fruit.  Under 
no  consideration  should  plum  trees  be  planted  closer 
than  twenty-four  feet  apart.  This,  of  course,  refers 
to  planting  in  orchard  form.  For  gardens  or  in  small 


Two-year-old  Plum 
tree  showing  frame- 
work branches  short- 
ened in.  The  greater 
diameter  of  the  frame- 
work branches  indi- 
cates how  far  the  tree 
was  cut  back  the  first 
year. 


A  three-year-old  Plum  tree  already  giving  evidence  of  the 
much  desired  goblet  form. 


plots  of  ground,  the  trees  may  be  planted  very  much 
closer  than  this.  By  pruning  regularly  every  year  and 
then  holding  the  annual  growth  of  the  trees  in  check,  it 
is  not  only  practicable  to  have  trees  as  close  as  twelve 
feet  apart,  but  to  harvest  very  good  crops  of  fruit. 

STOCKS 

The  peach  and  myrobolan  root  are  the  standard 
stocks  for  the  plum  and  these  two  roots  seem  to  meet 
practically  all  the  conditions  where  the  plums  are 
raised,  the  peach  root  being  given  the  preference  on  the 
sandy,  loamy  soils,  and  the  myrobolan  on  the  heavier 
and  damper  soils.  It  is  quite  possible  within  a  few 
years  that  other  roots,  such  as  the  Mussel,  so  exten- 
sively used  in  Great  Britain  and  on  the  continent  of 
Europe  for  so  many  of  the  stone  fruits,  will  find  con- 
ditions equally  as  congenial  with  us.  The  only  way  to 
raise  this  stock  is  by  layering,  making  it  rather  expen- 
sive. Several  varieties  of  plums  including  the  following, 
lack  affinity  for  the  peach  root:  Yellow  Egg,  Jefferson 
and  Washington.  On  very  gravelly  soils  the  almond 
root  could  be  used  to  advantage,  nearly  all  varieties 
doing  well  on  this  root.  It  has  not  been  used  to  any 
extent,  however. 

PRUNING 

To  deliberately  say  that  a  plum  tree  should  be 
pruned  regularly  every  year  would  be  just  as  non- 
sensical as  a  recommendation  never  to  prune  the  plum. 
No  absolutely  fixed  rule  can  be  adopted  when  it  comes 
to  pruning,  whether  it  be  a  plum  or  anything  else,  for 
in  the  final  analysis  the  grower  must  study  his  condi- 
tions and  decide  for  himself  the  policy  to  pursue. 

There  cannot  possibly  be  any  argument,  however, 
in  shaping  the  trees  when  they  are  young  and  training 
the  branches  which  will  eventually  be  the  main  supports 
of  the  tree  I  have  no  patience  with  the  man  who  will 
not  cut  his  trees  back  to  at  least  twenty  inches  after 
they  are  planted  and  who  will  not  endeavor  to  have  the 
framework  branches  properly  distributed  around  the 
body  of  the  tree.  If,  in  after  years,  larger  crops  are 
produced  by  allowing  the  trees  to  grow  at  their  own 
sweet  will,  except  to  cut  out"  interfering  branches,  this 
is  a  matter  of  judgment. 

The  planting  and  the  bringing  of  an  orchard  into 
bearing  is  no  small  undertaking.  It  not  only  taxes  the 
average  man's  purse  strings  to  the  limit  but  in  addition 
it  means  the  employment  of  every  resource  at  his  com- 
mand in  labor  and  brains  to  reach  the  goal  for  which 
he  is  aiming.  Therefore  he  must  have  returns  for  the 
combination  of  forces  which  have  caused  him  to  build 
vigorous,  substantial  trees. 

If  I  were  growing  the  orchard  my  decision  would  be 
to  prune  the  trees  regularly  every  year  even  after  they 
reach  the  four-year  age  limit. 

It  is  not  possible  to  say  definitely  how  much  of  the 
annual  growth  should  be  removed,  but  that  the  trees 
should  be  pruned  to  promote  fruit  spurs,  according  to 
my  idea,  is  the  only  practicable  and  sensible  plan  in  the 
handling  of  a  plum  tree.  As  I  see  it,  a  tree  with  fruit 
from  the  very  crotches  to  the  tip  ends  and  evenly 
distributed  throughout,  is  preferable  to  having  a  total 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


19 


absence  of  laterals  and  to  have  all  the  fruit  spurs  on  the 
upper  limbs.  Where  the  trees  are  not  cut  back  this  is 
just  what  happens.  After  a  number  of  years,  depending 
on  the  vigor  of  the  tree,  practically  no  new  wood  is 
being  made,  there  is  apparently  a  lacking  in  vitality, 
the  blossoms  are  weak,  and  there  is  a  general  debility  in 
the  tree.  There  is  only  one  recourse  then — cut  the 
tree  back  and  build  a  new  top  and  be  out  of  a  crop  for 
at  least  three  years  until  the  tree  is  again  back  where  it 
belongs. 

THINNING 

As  a  rule  it  is  not  customary  to  thin  plums.  Com- 
mercially, very  good  fruit  can  be  grown  without  doing 
this  work.  Nevertheless,  there  is  no  use  denying  the 


A  six-year-old  Plum  tree.     A  fine  type  of  a  tree. 

fact  that  much  finer  and  more  uniform  fruit  will  be  pro- 
duced where  this  is  resorted  to.  For  the  man  who 
wishes  to  maintain  a  degree  of  quality  and  establish  a 
standard  for  his  fruit,  it  is  very  essential  that  thinning 
be  done. 

GATHERING 

For  shipment  to  distant  markets,  plums  should  be 
picked  while  they  are  still  hard  and  have  taken  on  some 
color.  For  local  shipments  or  for  table  use  they  should 
be  mature,  well  colored  but  not  soft. 

IRRIGATION 

While  the  trees  are  young,  the  same  care  in  the  matter 
of  irrigating  should  be  given  to  them  as  to  any  other 
young  trees.  Just  bear  in  mind  that  in  the  interior 


valleys  they  must  have  more  water  than  is  necessary  in 
the  coast  counties,  where  there  are  fogs,  more  moisture 
in  the  air  and  less  evaporation  from  the  soil  because  of 
the  difference  in  climatic  conditions.  Plums  are  very 
much  subject  to  the  attack  of  a  minute  red  spider,  which 
weaves  a  web  on  the  under-side  of  the  leaves.  When 
they  become  very  numerous,  and  they  propagate  very 
freely  in  the  warm  weather,  the  leaves  turn  brown  and 
finally  drop  off.  This,  of  course,  retards  the  growth  of 
the  tree.  All  that  is  necessary  to  control  the  pest  is  to 
spray  the  trees  with  water  and  then  apply,  powdered 
sulphur.  To  hold  it  in  check  it  may  be  necessary  to 
attend  to  this  several  times  during  the  summer  months, 
but  under  no  consideration  should  the  work  be  delayed 
later  than  the  middle  of  June. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  FOR  SHIPPING 

Beauty,  Burbank,  Climax,  Clyman,  Diamond,  Giant, 
Grand  Duke,  Formosa,  Gaviota,  Kelsey  Japan,  Presi- 
dent, Santa  Rosa,  Satsuma,  Wickson,  Yellow  Egg. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  FOR  CANNING 

Jefferson,  Imperial  Gage,  Washington,  Yellow  Egg, 
Bavay's  Green  Gage. 

TIME  OF  RIPENING 
Maturing  in  Each  Month  in  About  the  Order  Named 

June 

Clyman,  Cherry,  Beauty,  Apex  Plumcot,  Climax, 
Rutland  Plumcot,  Bartlett,  Santa  Rosa,  Burbank. 

July 

Abundance,  Bartlett,  Formosa,  Gaviota,  Simon, 
Anita,  Satsuma,  Wickson. 

August 

Washington,  Diamond,  Apple,  Grand  Duke,  Jefferson, 
Giant,  Yellow  Egg,  Bavay's  Green  Gage,  Kelsey  Japan, 
Red  Egg. 

September 

President,  Bradshaw,  Shropshire  Damson. 


The  Santa  Eosa  Plum,  one  of  the  leading  varieties  of 
shipping  plums— a  Burbank  introduction. 


20 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


An  improved  French  Prune  tree.  Note  its  tendency  to  spread  out  and  that  the  branches  are  inclined  to  hang  down. 
This  is  characteristic  of  this  tree.  Except  to  thin  out  interfering  branches  this  tree  has  had  very  little  pruning 
in  recent  years. 


THE  PRUNE 

Prunes  and  plums  are  so  closely  allied  that  remarks 
pertaining  to  one  fruit  are  equally  applicable  to  the 
other.  Practically  speaking  the  prune  is  characterized 
by  its  sweet  firm  flesh  and  has  the  property  of  drying 
and  curing  without  the  seed  being  removed. 

The  varieties  of  prunes  having  their  origin  in  France 
seem  to  find  conditions  more  congenial  in  the  counties 
clustering  around  San  Francisco  bay  than  in  any  other 
part  of  the  state.  There  are  certain  favored  spots, 
more  particularly  in  the  silty  soils  of  the  river  bottom 
in  the  Sacramento  and  San  Joaquin  valleys,  where  the 
prunes  not  only  are  very  thrifty  but  are  very  dependable 
in  their  production  of  crops.  From  a  standpoint  of 
quality  the  dried  product  from  the  interior  is  inferior  in 
quality  to  the  prune  from  the  coast  counties.  One  of 
the  strange  anomalies  in  connection  with  the  growing 
of  the  French  prune  is  that  in  the  coast  counties,  even 
with  their  much  lower  average  of  temperature  units  in 
the  summer  months,  the  harvesting  season  commences 
at  least  two  weeks  earlier  than  in  the  interior,  while  the 
apricot  in  the  same  section  is  six  weeks  later  in  maturing 
than  the  apricots  in  the  interior  valley  counties.  Trees 
should  be  planted  from  twenty-four  to  thirty  feet 
apart. 


STOCKS 

It  is  very  difficult  for  nurserymen  outside  of  Cali- 
fornia to  grasp  the  situation  concerning  the  demand 
which  exists  for  trees  on  different  roots  to  meet  soil 
conditions.  The  answer  is  that  in  California  the  growing 
of  fruit  is  just  as  much  a  great  commercial  business  and 
is  justr  as  much  a  staple  as  the  growing  of  cotton  and 
sugar  in  the  Southern  States. 

The  stability  of  the  tree  and  its  fruitfulness  must  be 
guarded  by  the  selection  of  a  root  best  adapted  to  the 
particular  soil  in  which  the  growler  contemplates  plant- 
ing, therefore  the  extreme  care  in  securing  the  right 
root.  The  Myrobolan  root  is  preferred  by  most  grow- 
ers, although  there  are  many  soils  on  which  this  root  is 
•  used  where  the  peach  could  be  used  to  advantage.  In 
behalf  of  the  peach  root  it  may  be  said  that  the  trees 
are  stronger  growers  than  on  the  Myrobolan,  although 
not  quite  so  long  lived.  There  is  another  point  which 
must  not  be  lost  sight  of  and  that  is  that  there  is  a  lack 
of  affinity  of  some  varieties  of  prunes  for  the  peach  root  j 
among  them  may  be  mentioned  Robe  de  Sargent,  Im- 
perial Epineuse,  and  Sugar. 

The  Robe  de  Sargent  lacks  affinity  for  the  almond 
root,  while  the  other  two  take  well  on  this  root  and 
make  good  unions. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


21 


PRUNING 

Instructions  about  pruning  given  for  the  plum  will 
serve  equally  as  well  for  the  prune. 

GATHERING  AND  DRYING 

The  prune  should  never  be  picked  until  it  is  fully 
ripe.  This  is  indicated  when  it  is  soft  to  the  touch. 
The  trees  are  shaken  slightly,  although  with  many 
growers  it  is  customary  to  make  a  number  of  pickings 
during  the  season  from  time  to  time  as  the  fruits  drop 
to  the  ground.  Unless  the  prune  is  dead  ripe,  it  makes 
an  inferior  dried  article.  The  first  step  in  curing  is  to 
dip  the  prunes  in  boiling  water  in  which  lye  has  been 
dissolved,  using  one  pound  of  lye  to  ten  gallons  of  water. 
It  is  very  important  to  maintain  the  temperature  of  the 
water  at  at  least  200  degrees  Fahrenheit,  if  the  best 
results  are  to  be  obtained.  The  purpose  of  this  dipping 
is  to  crack  the  skin  to  facilitate  drying.  As  a  rule  the 
fruit  is  immersed  for  about  a  minute  but  this  may  be 


The  owner  of  this  three-year-old  French  Prune  orchard 
does  not  agree  with  me  in  my  recommendations  of 
pruning. 


But  this  man  does.    The  reader  must  draw  his  own  conclu- 
sions as  to  which  plan  is  preferable. 

varied,  and  final  experience  is  the  best  teacher  as  to 
the  strength  of  the  lye  solution  and  the  length  of  time 
of  dipping.  Carelessness  in  dipping,  that  is,  not  having 
the  water  to  the  boiling  point,  causes  fermentation  in 
prunes,  which  are. termed  "bloaters."  The  Imperial 
Epineuse  is  very  much  subject  to  this  trouble.  Mr. 
C.  F.  Fleming,  manager  of  one  of  the  prune  packing 
plants  of  the  California  Packing  Corporation  in  San 
Jose,  claims  that  by  allowing  the  prunes  of  this  variety  to 
remain  on  the  trays  for  two  or  three  days  until  wilted, 
before  dipping,  much  of  this  difficulty  will  be  overcome. 
After  the  prunes  are  dipped  in  the  solution,  they  are  then 
rinsed  off  in  cold  water  to  remove  all  traces  of  the  lye. 
There  are  a  number  of  processing  machines  on  the  mar- 
ket devised  for  handling  prunes.  These  are  either 
operated  by  hand  or  by  power,  depending  on  the 
quantity  of  fruit  to  be  handled.  From  the  dipper  the 
prunes  are  transferred  to  trays,  which  are  three  feet 
wide,  eight  feet  long,  with  a  two-inch  cleat  all  around, 
made  of  one-inch  lumber  to  prevent  the  prunes  from 
rolling  off.  The  drying  is  carried  on  in  the  open,  the 
desiccating  of  the  fruit  being  due  entirely  to  the  rays 
of  the  sun.  It  is  very  important  to  stir  the  prunes  on 
the  trays  to  prevent  them  from  sticking.  This  causes 
them  to  dry  uniformly.  Clean  trays  play  a  very  im- 
portant part  in  preventing  mold  and  the  loss  of  the 
prunes  in  event  of  wet  and  sultry  weather.  There  is  a 
tendency  on  the  part  of  beginners  to  over-dry,  exhaust- 
ing all  the  juices  of  the  fruit,  by  too  long  exposure  to  the 
sun.  Take  a  handful  of  prunes  in  the  morning  before 
they  have  been  warmed  up  by  the  sun,  and  if,  after 


22 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


squeezing  them  slightly,  they  fall  apart  readily,  the 
trays  should  be  stacked  one  above  another,  just  as  soon 
as  the  fruit  has  become  slightly  warmed  up.  After  a 
few  days  the  prunes  should  be  placed  in  bins  on  wooden 
floors,  where  they  have  access  to  the  air  but  covered 
in  such  a  manner  that  they  will  not  be  rained  on.  There 
are  a  number  of  solutions  for  preparing  prunes  for 
packing  commercially.  Probably  the  simplest  dip  is  a 
solution  made  by  dissolving  five  pounds  of  salt  to  one 
hundred  gallons  of  water.  As  a  result  of  this  dip  the 
fruit  takes  on  a  bright,  dark,  glossy  hue.  The  solution 
should  be  used  hot  and  the  prunes  should  have  the  sur- 
plus moisture  dried  off  before  packing  in  the  boxes. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  FOR  DRYING 

French,  French  Improved,  Imperial  Epineuse,  Robe 
de  Sargent,  Sugar. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  FOR  SHIPPING 

Conquest,   Fellenberg,   German,   Hungarian,   Silver, 
Tragedy,  Standard. 


PERIOD  OF  RIPENING 
June 

July 


Tragedy. 

Sugar. 

August 
Conquest,  Fellenberg,  German,  Hungarian,  Standard. 

September 

French,  Improved  French,  Imperial  Epineuse,  Robe 
de  Sargent,  Silver. 


When  you  get  a  tree  to  produce  fruit  from  a  point  close  to 
the  main  body  to  the  very  tip  ends,  the  demonstration 
of  successful  pruning  is  complete. 


THE  APRICOT 

The  apricot  is  a  native  of  Asia  Minor  and  the  higher 
regions  of  Central  Asia.  As  a  commercial  proposition 
California  has  practically  a  monopoly  of  the  apricot 
culture.  No  other  section  of  the  Union  produces  it  in 
quantities  at  so  small  an  expense  and  so  little  risk  of 
failure  in  a  crop.  In  appearance  it  is  the  handsomest  of 
all  stone  fruits  and  contains  less  acid.  For  canning, 
evaporating  and  drying  purposes,  and  for  use  in  the 
fresh  state,  the  fruit  can  hardly  be  excelled.  It  seems 
particularly  adapted  to  the  coast  counties,  where  the 
fruit  attains  the  largest  size  and  the  highest  flavor.  In 
the  interior  valleys  it  has  a  distinct  advantage,  in  that 
it  ripens  its  fruits  fully  a  month  earlier  than  in  the 
cooler  sections  of  the  state.  A  few  years  ago  the  only 
value  the  apricot  pits  possessed  was  for  fuel,  but  today 
there  is  no  waste  of  any  part  of  this  all-around  fruit. 
The  pits  sell  readily  at  $40  per  ton.  Special  machinery 
has  been  devised  for  cracking  the  pits  and  extracting 
the  kernels.  A  very  fine  edible  oil  is  made  from  the 
kernels.  During  the  period  of  the  war  the  shells  came 
into  use  for  the  manufacture  of  gas  masks,  the  United 
States  Government  taking  the  entire  available  supply. 
These  were  carbonized  and  then  subjected  to  a  secret 
process.  Apricot  pits,  peach  pits  and  cocoanut  shells 
were  in  great  demand  because  of  their  effectiveness  in 
absorbing  the  noxious  vapors  better  than  any  other 
known  material. 

STOCKS  FOR  THE  APRICOT 

It  is  not  surprising  that  in  California,  where  such 
great  strides  have  been  made  in  commercial  fruit  grow- 
ing, that  the  stocks  best  constituted  to  certain  soils 
and  locations  should  be  in  demand  by  growers. 
In  order  to  meet  these  conditions  it  has  been  found 
necessary  to  bud  the  apricot  on  peach,  apricot  and 
myrobolan  roots.  Some  growers  even  go  so  far  as  to 
want  the  apricot  on  almond  root.  The  apricot  has  no 
affinity  for  this  stock  and  it  would  be  dangerous  prac- 
tice to  use  it,  because  the  trees  are  liable  to  break  off  on 
the  slightest  provocation.  On  deep  well-drained  loamy 
soils  the  apricot  makes  a  fine  vigorous  tree.  The  peach 
root  has  a  much  wider  adaptability  and  will  do  well  on 
a  greater  variety  of  soils,  even  those  which  may  become 
very  wet  during  the  early  spring  months.  In  soils 
which  are  heavy  and  very  retentive  of  moisture  and 
where  the  water  may  stand  for  any  length  of  time  the 
Myrobolan  root  should  be  used  exclusively.  The  trees 
do  not  attain  so  great  a  size  on  this  root  but  they  are 
longer-lived,  which  is  a  good  point  in  their  favor.  For 
commercial  planting  the  apricot  should  never  be  set 
closer  than  twenty-four  feet  apart  and  on  deep  rich 
soils,  due  to  its  faculty  of  being  a  strong,  straggly  grower 
it  would  seem  advisable  to  plant  the  trees  either 
twenty-eight  or  thirty  feet  apart. 

PRUNING 

The  very  fact  that  the  apricot  trees  are  strong  grow- 
ers obviously  makes  it  necessary  to  prune  the  trees 
carefully  for  at  least  the  first  four  years  of  their  exist- 
ence. The  trees  should  be  cut  back  to  twenty  inches 
after  they  are  set.  It  is  safe  to  cut  trees  back  to  this 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


23 


height  even  if  they  are  extra  large  and  devoid  of  any 
lateral  branches  below  where  the  tree  is  nipped  off,  be- 
cause of  the  plump,  well  developed  buds  on  the  stem  of 
the  tree.  Not  more  than  four  branches  should  be  left 
the  following  year  after  planting,  having  them  as  care- 
fully distributed  around  the  stem  as  it  is  possible  to 
get  them.  In  the  second  year  these  branches  should 
have  at  least  two-thirds  of  their  growth  cut  off.  This 
severe  cutting  promotes  not  only  a  stocky  well-balanced 
tree  but  insures  a  vigorous  growth  and  encourages  a 
compactness  that  cannot  be  secured  in  any  other  way. 
In  the  third  year  the  pruning  should  be  far  more 
moderate,  otherwise  there  is  a  tendency  to  make  the 
tree  brushy  to  such  an  extent  that  many  of  the  laterals 
starting  from  the  framework  branches  just  above  the 
point  where  they  diverge  from  the  main  body  of  the 
tree  are  smothered  out.  In  the  fourth  year  the  pruning 
should  be  more  a  matter  of  shaping  and  controlling  the 
branches,  making  a  rampant  growth.  The  tree  in  its 
fourth  year  should  have  a  pronounced  wide-open  goblet 
form  and  it  will  unquestionably,  if  the  pruning  has  been 
properly  done. 


A  six-year-old  Apricot  tree  with  a  well  developed  head,  the 
result  of  regular  and  systematic  pruming. 


One-year-old  Apricot  or- 
chard-grown   tree,   with 
lateral    branches   short- 
ened in. 


This  two-year-old  Apricot  tree  is  already  giving  evidence  by 

its  numerous  blossoms  on  the  main  branches  what  may  be 

expected  of  it  when  it  reaches  bearing  age. 


There  is  no  use  denying  the  fact  that  the  apricot  is 
distinctly  a  creature  of  environment.  It  is  an  open 
question  as  to  whether  or  not  any  benefit  is  derived,  as  far 
as  fruitfulness  is  concerned,  from  summer  pruning.  A 
grower  must  determine  this  for  himself.  The  results 
obtained  must  be  his  answer.  Some  varieties  after  they 
have  reached  bearing  age  if  pruned  heavily  every  year 


will  not  produce  sufficient  fruit  to  pay  for  cultivation. 
This  has  been  demonstrated  to  be  a  fact  in  the  handling 
of  the  Hemskirke,  which  if  pruned  heavily  is  a  very  shy 
bearer.  For  size  and  flavor  there  are  few  apricots  that 
will  compare  with  it,  unless  it  is  the  Moorpark.  This 
variety  has  thoroughly  identified  itself  as  being  so  shy 
a  bearer  that  commercially  it  is  no  longer  seriously  con- 
sidered. As  stated  in  the  introduction,  I  am  solely  re- 
sponsible for  any  recommendations  concerning  pruning 
in  this  booklet;  at  the  same  time,  if  I  have  any  egotism 
it  is  not  so  pronounced  that  I  am  not  willing  to  give 
credit  to  the  successful  men  who  practise  the  very  meth- 
ods which  I  champion.  Furthermore,  in  my  opinion, 
although  my  suggestions  may  be  of  value  to  the  reader, 
nevertheless,  wherever  it  is  possible  for  a  planter  to  per- 
sonally visit  a  property  and  absorb  from  the  owner  the 
methods  that  have  been  followed,  there  is  nothing  to 
my  mind  which  will  be  more  conducive  to  success  than 
to  follow  along  the  same  lines  as  the  man  who  demon- 
strates by  an  actual  example  that  he  is  on  the  right 
track.  Possibly  the  largest  acreage  in  apricot  trees  is 
found  in  Santa  Clara  county.  It  is  the  exception  to  find 
an  instance  where  trees  are  not  pruned.  There  are 
very  few,  if  any,  properties  in  the  valley  in  which 
thorough  and  intelligent  management  is  more  manifest 
than  in  the  500  acres  under  the  control  of  Mr.  H.  E. 
Losse,  recently  deceased.  He  had  120  acres  of  fifteen- 
year-old  apricot  trees  equally  divided  between  Blen- 
heim and  Hemskirke.  The  annual  production  varies 
from  750  to  1000  tons  of  green  fruit.  No  finer  example 
of  pruning  could  be  found  anywhere,  for  the  trees  are 
loaded  with  fruit  annually  which  is  of  the  largest  size 
and  evenly  distributed  from  the  framework  branches 
to  the  extreme  top  of  the  trees.  The  trees  are  never 
summer  pruned.  Up  to  four  years  ago  the  treatment 
of  both  varieties  was  the  same,  with  the  result  that  the 
Hemskirke  variety  produced  very  light  crops.  Now 
that  the  pruning  of  the  Hemskirke  has  been  confined  to 
the  removal  of  interfering  branches  the  yield  has  been 


24 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


exceedingly  satisfactory.  It  will  be  necessary  after  a 
period  of  years  to  head  in  these  trees  very  severely  to 
develop  new  wood  in  the  trees  handled  in  this  manner. 

THINNING 

The  proper  time  to  do  this  is  just  before  the  kernel 
gets  hard.  It  is  a  very  important  piece  of  work,  which 
should  be  religiously  performed,  when  the  trees  give 
evidence  of  carrying  more  fruit  than  they  should.  The 
fruit  should  be  thinned  to.be  from  three  to  four  inches 
apart.  Sometimes  the  ground  under  a  tree  may  be 
literally  carpeted  with  green  fruit,  but  even  this  should 
not  deter  the  owner  from  his  task  if  he  wants  first-class 
fruit. 

GATHERING 

The  time  to  gather  apricots  for  canning  is  when  they 
have  reached  their  size,  are  firm  and  show  a  slight  tinge 
of  green  close  to  the  stem  end.  For  drying  they  should 
b>e  somewhat  further  advanced.  The  canneries  prefer 
fruit  which  will  run  twelve  apricots  to  the  pound  and 
less.  The  larger  the  size,  the  higher  the  price.  For 
drying  it  is  necessary  to  halve  the  fruit  first  and  extract 
the  pit.  Prune  trays  are  used  for  drying  apricots.  The 
very  fact  that  apricots  ripen  so  far  in  advance  of  prunes 
and  that  there  is  very  little  danger  from  rain,  should 
cause  prune  growers  to  confine  at  least  part  of  their 
acreage  to  apricots.  One  year  with  another,  there  is 
comparatively  little  difference  in  the  profits  realized. 
The  filled  trays  are  run  into  the  sulphur  house  on  trucks 


designed  for  this  purpose.  They  remain  in  the  fumes 
for  at  least  four  hours.  A  good  rule  to  go  by  is  to  watch 
the  fruit  and  whenever  a  good  part  of  the  cups  are 
filled  with  juice  it  is  an  indication  that  the  fruit  has 
been  sulphured  sufficiently.  The  sulphuring  brightens 
up  the  fruit,  causes  it  to  retain  its  color  and  prevents 
it- from  being  infested  by  insects.  The  time  of  drying 
varies  from  six  to  eight  days,  depending  on  the  weather. 
Whenever  the  fruit  shows  that  the  moisture  is  prac- 
tically out  of  it  and  is  still  quite  supple,  stack  the  trays 
and  permit  the  drying  to  continue  from  this  point  in 
the  shade.  After  the  fruit  is  cured  it  is  shoved  off  the 
trays  with  wooden  paddles  into  sweat  or  lug  boxes. 

IRRIGATION 

Even  in  the  coast  counties,  where  there  is  an  abun- 
dance of  rainfall  during  the  winter  months,  it  is  very 
important  indeed  to  be  in  a  position  to  irrigate  an 
apricot  orchard.  Our  climate  is  so- arid,  there  being 
no  rain  from  May  to  October,  that  it  is  necessary  to 
supply  moisture  artificially  to  maintain  vigorous 
thrifty  trees.  While  the  trees  are  young  from  three  to 
four  irrigations  are  necessary.  One,  and  at  .the  outside 
two,  irrigations  will  be  all  that  will  be  required  when  the 
trees  have  reached  a  bearing  age.  Winter  irrigation,  or 
rather  applying  water  in  the  late  fall,  has  a  very  bene- 
ficial effect,  and  this,  if  followed  by  an  irrigation  just 
before  thinning,  will  be  the  means  of  causing  the  fruit 
to  run  into  larger  sizes.  Cultivation  following  an 


A  four-year-old-Peach  tree  with  the  leaves  stripped  off  from  one  side.      It  is  loaded  down  with  a  heavy  crop'  of 
uniform  sized  peaches.    Pruning  and  thinning  combined  are  responsible  for  such  results. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


irrigation,  not  once  but  several  times  over,  is  even  more 
important  than  irrigating.  Anything  that  will  develop 
sound,  healthy  roots  seeking  into  the  lowest  stratas  of 
the  soil  for  sustenance  and  moisture,  is  the  right  course 
to  pursue. 


Blenheim, 
Pringle,  Tilton. 


COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 
Hemskirke,    Newcastle    Early,    Royal, 


RIPENING  PERIOD 


May 

Pringle,  Newcastle  Early. 

June 

Large  Early  Montgamet,  Royal,  Routiers  Peach, 
Smyrna,  Blenheim,  Tilton. 

July 

Hemskirke,  Moorpark. 

THE  PEACH 

The  peach,  like  the  prune  and  apricot,  is  indeed  a 
fruit  of  commercial  importance,  and  finds  wide  dis- 
tribution not  only  in  California  but  throughout  the 
length  and  breadth  of  the  Pacific  slope.  For  size, 
flavor,  color  and  shipping  qualities  the  peaches  grown 
in  this  state  have  a  national  reputation.  The  tree  pre- 
fers a  light,  deep,  sandy  loam,  preferably  inclined  to  be 
dry  rather  than  too  moist,  but  well  drained.  It  should 
be  not  less  than  three  or  four  feet  deep,  the  more  depth 
the  better. 

Fresno  county  is  the  peach  center  of  California,  hav- 
ing a  total,  according  to  reliable  estimates,  of  not  less 
than  21,000  acres.  The  Libby,  McNeil  &  Libby  Can- 
nery, located  in  Selma,  the  great  peach  center  of  the 


A  two-year-old  Peach  tree. 


Left— A  one-year-old  nursery-grown  Peach  tree  and  the  same 
topped  and  the  root  pruned  before  planting. 

Right— A  one-year-old  orchard-grown  Peach  tree  with  its 
branches  cut  back  and  well  distributed  around  the  stem. 


Same  tree  as  above  pruned.     This  tree  will  produce  a  light 
crop  of  fruit  without  impairing  the  vigor  of  the  tree. 


26 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  four-year-old  Peach  tree  with  fruit-'bearing  laterals  from 
the  point  where  the  main  branches  diverge  from  the  main 
body  of  the  tree  to  the  very  top. 


county,  handles  no  less  than  8000  tons  of  peaches  an- 
nually in  its  plant,  and  this  is  only  a  very  small  part  of 
the  canning  peaches  raised  yearly  in  Fresno  county. 

The  commercial  importance  of  peach  growing  cannot 
be  estimated  in  dollars  and  cents,  for  the  great  territory 
over  which  the  peach  thrives  with  the  practical  cer- 
tainty of  a  crop  one  year  with  another  makes  the  field 
a  very  promising  one. 

STOCKS  FOR  THE  PEACH 

Without  exception  the  peach  root  is  used  exclusively 
for  growing  peaches.  For  several  years  I  have  been 
carrying  on  experiments  with  different  varieties  to  de- 
termine their  value  from  a  standpoint  of  growth  and 
general  freedom  from  crown  gall,  and  taking  it  all  in 
all,  the  Salway  comes  first,  and  the  trees  produced  from 
Lovell  and  Muir  seed  next.  Within  the  last  few  years 
I  have  been  carrying  on  experiments  with  Tennessee 
natural  pits  and  am  already  convinced  of  their  value  as 
to  the  vigor  of  growth.  If  the  rcot  system  is  found  to 
be  healthy  and  of  a  fibrous  character,  this  stock  will  be 
given  the  preference. 

DISTANCES  APART 

In  former  years  it  was  customary  to  plant  peaches 
twenty  feet  apart.  The  trees  grew  so  rapidly  that  it 
was  only  a  question  of  a  few  years  when  the  branches 
were  interlacing.  On  sandy  soils  from  twenty-four  to 
twenty-five  feet  is  a  very  satisfactory  distance  to  plant, 
while  on  heavy  soils  twenty-eight  to  thirty  feet  is 
better. 

PRUNING 

The  general  cultural  directions  for  the  handling  of 
deciduous  fruit  trees  in  the  introductory  chapters  should 
be  closely  followed  in  the  case  of  the  peach  tree.  Noth- 
ing will  bring  a  peach  tree  to  a  premature  end  quicker 
than  not  to  prune.  The  trees  as  they  stand  in  nursery 
rows  have  the  limbs  removed  to  a  point  about  twelve 


inches  from  the  ground.  Instead  of  removing  all  these 
limbs  when  topping  the  tree  at  twenty  inches,  they 
should  be  cut  back  to  about  two  inches  long,  so  in  case 
the  buds  on  the  main  body  do  not  start  in  the  spring 
the  buds  on  the  smaller  branches  will.  If  the  buds  do 
start  on  the  main  bcdy,  the  branchlets  may  be  clipped 
off  with  a  shear. 

All  growers  are  practically  in  accord  that  peach 
trees  must  be  pruned.  How  to  do  it,  brings  up  an  end- 
less amount  of  argument.  They  say  "A  confession  is 
good  for  the  soul";  I  am  not  going  to  argue  this  pro  or 
con  except  to  say  that  I  am  now  firmly  of  the  opinion 
that  the  ideas  that  I  have  had  for  a  number  of  years 
relative  to  the  pruning  of  the  peach,  while  they  may  not 
be  absolutely  wrong,  do  not  bring  the  trees  into  bearing 
as  early  and  as  prolifically  as  it  should.  There  is  no 
argument  about  heading  the  trees  to  twenty  inches 
after  setting  and  resorting  to  very  severe  pruning  the 
first  year,  cutting  off  at  least  one-half,  or  better  still 
two-thirds  of  the  current  season's  growth.  Not  more 
than  four  branches  should  be  used  to  make  the  head  of 
the  tree,  and  they  should  be  distributed  to  secure  as 
symmetrical  a  tree  as  possible.  Heretofore  my  recom- 
mendation to  prune  back  severely  in  the  second  and 
third  years  has  resulted  in  developing  an  immerse 
amount  of  woody  growth,  producing  a  fine  umbrageous 
head,  which  was  a  sight  to  behold  in  the  summer  months 
and  which  to  all  appearances,  judging  from  the  general 
healthfulness  of  the  tree,  was  the  right  policy  to  follow. 
Careful  observations  have  now  convinced  me  that  this 
severe  pruning  has  promoted  the  woody  growth  of  the 
tree  to  such  an  extent  that  it  has  militated  against  its 
fruitfulness.  Instead  of  cutting  the  framework  branches 
back  so  severely  in  the  second  and  third  years  they 
should  not  be  cut  back  more  than  one-third  and  the 
laterals  distributed  along  their  entire  length  at  intervals 
of  six  to  eight  inches  apart  should  be  shortened  in,  of 
course,  but  not  cut  off.  By  following  this  plan  a  crop 


The  same  tree  pruned.  The  young  man,  George  Stephenson, 
standing  beside  this  tree  was  one  of  the  author's  foremen, 
who  sacrificed  his  life  on  the  soil  of  France  while  fighting 
for  his  country. 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


27 


of  peaches  which  will  pay  for  cultivation  may  be  har- 
vested the  third  year,  without  in  any  way  impairing 
the  vitality  of  the  tree. 

In  the  fourth  year  and  in  subsequent  seasons  the 
method  of  pruning  will  be  self-evident  to  the  expe- 
rienced pruner  and  requires  no  further  elucidation  here. 
This  is  the  very  idea  which  I  hoped  to  bring  about  by 
the  old  method,  but  it  was  invariably  frustrated  by  the 
exuberance  of  growth  of  the  tree,  the  fruitful  laterals 
being  smothered  out. 

THINNING 

To  obtain  large,  firm  fruit,  thinning  should  be  done 
when  the  fruit  has  set  well  and  before  the  kernel  has 
hardened. 

Most  growers  become  frightened  when  they  find  the 
ground  under  a  tree  literally  covered  with  fruit,  and  get 
cold  feet.  Forget  your  imaginary  troubles  and  keep  at 
it  until  your  peaches  are  not  closer  than  four  inches 
apart,  and  try  to  have  most  of  them  six  inches  from  each 
other,  and  then  your  crop  will  be  heavier,  no  doubt, 
than  your  tree  will  carry,  without  having  a  prop  to  sup- 
port the  overburdened  branches.  Less  pits  and  more 
pounds  of  actual  fine,  large,  luscious,  perfect  peachy 
peaches  should  be  the  purpose  for  which  every  grower 
should  strive. 

GATHERING 

For  shipment  to  distant  markets  it  is  necessary  to 
pick  peaches  just  as  soon  as  they  show  a  slight  color. 
At  this  stage  they  are  far  from  being  ripe  and  this  may 
account  for  their  lack  in  flavor  when  they  reach  the 
eastern  markets.  Climatic  conditions  are  very  favor- 
able indeed  in  California  for  not  only  developing 
highly  colored  peaches  but  fruit  of  the  highest 
flavor  as  well.  For  canning  purposes,  the  Clings  are 
given  the  preference,  because  of  their  greater  firmness 
and  the  fact  that  they  stand  up  better  under  the 
cooking  process.  The  standard  size  for  canning  peaches 
is  fruit  which  will  just  pass  through  a  two  and  one- 
quarter-inch  ring.  Smaller  fruit  than  this  is  very  rarely 
accepted  by  the  canners,  unless  it  happens  in  years  of  a 
light  crop.  Care  should  be  exercised  in  gathering 
peaches  to  be  canned  to  avoid  bruising.  The  fruit 
should  be  well  colored  but  not  soft. 

DRYING  PEACHES 

For  drying  the  peaches  must  be  ripe  to  make  a  first- 
class  dried  article.  To  dry  peaches  to  advantage,  it 
is  necessary  first  of  all  to  have  a  drying  yard,  or  if  ar- 
rangements can  be  made  to  have  a  plot  of  ground  to  be 
used  for  this  purpose  in  alfalfa,  so  much  the  better.  A 
great  point  in  favor  of  an  alfalfa  field  is  its  freedom  from 
dust.  To  handle  the  fruit  to  advantage,  it  is  necessary 
to  have  tracks  not  only  running  to  the  sulphur  houses 
but  also  to  the  field  where  the  trays  are  to  be  exposed  to 
the  sun.  In  former  years  it  was  the  practice  to  use  2x4 
Oregon  pine  scantling  and  to  screw  down  heavy  iron 
strapping  to  the  two-inch  edge  to  wheel  the  trucks  over. 
Portable  tracks  are  now  to  be  had,  made  entirely  of 
steel.  They  will  last  for  a  great  many  years  and  can  be 
moved  very  quickly  from  place  to  place.  They  are  so 


constructed  in  sections  that  several  hundreds  of  feet 
can  be  put  together  very  quickly.  The  same  trays  used 
for  apricots  and  prunes  answer  equally  well  for  peaches. 
The  sulphuring  of  peaches  is  carried  on  in  a  shed-like 
structure,  constructed  of  tongue  and  grooved  lumber 
and  lined  with  building  paper.  The  peaches,  after  being 
halved,  are  placed  in  the  trays,  cups  up.  In  sulphuring 
it  is  necessary  to  place  cleats  between  the  trays  to  per- 
mit the  fumes  to  penetrate  in  every  direction.  The  ex- 
posure should  not  be  less  than  four  hours.  When  a  good 
part  of  the  halved  peaches  have  the  cups  partially  filled 
with  juice,  it  is  a  sign  that  the  fruit  has  been  in  the  sul- 
phur bath  a  sufficient  length  of  time.  If  the  trays  have 
.  been  placed  in  the  house  late  in  the  afternoon,  let  them 
remain  overnight  and  take  them  out  the  next  morning. 
If  taken  out  in  the  evening  they  will  have  a  dark  color 
and  command  a  less  price.  As  soon  as  the  peaches  on 
the  trays  are  no  longer  mushy  the  trays  should  at  once 
be  stacked,  the  curing  from  this  time  on  taking  place 
in  the  shade.  This  not  only  conserves  the  weight  of  the 
peaches  but  makes  a  far  better  dried  product.  After 
the  peaches  are  cured  they  are  scraped  off  the  trays 
with  wooden  paddles  into  sweat  boxes  for  delivery  to  the 
packing  house.  It  takes  from  ten  to  twelve  days,  de- 
pending on  the  weather,  to  dry  peaches. 

In  the  last  analysis  it  presents  the  finality  in  the  in- 
dustry, for  all  the  fruit  is  cared  for  and  there  is  no 
wastage.  There  has  been  more  or  less  prejudice  to  dried 
peaches  due  to  their  fuzzy  skin.  This  has  been  over- 
come now  by  a  process  for  which  the  Lovell  and  Muir 
seem  to  have  a  decided  advantage,  by  removing  the 
peel  by  a  recent  invention  even  after  the  fruit  is  dried. 
That  the  consuming  public  appreciates  this  grade  of 
fruit  is  demonstrated  by  the  high  prices  which  dried 
peeled  peaches  sell  for  in  the  market. 

As  a  matter  of  fact  the  orchardist  at  a  very  small 
additional  expense  could  easily  do  this  himself.  All 
that  is  necessary  after  the  peaches  have  been  halved, 
regardless  of  variety,  is  to  immerse  the  fruit  in  a  hot  lye 
water  maintained  at  a  temperature  of  200  degrees 
Fahrenheit  for  one  minute.  Dissolve  one  pound  of 
lye  in  ten  gallons  of  water.  The  peaches  after  being 
given  the  lye  dip  are  then  immersed  in  a  tank  of  cold 
water,  which  not  only  removes  every  vestige  of  lye  but 
causes  the  skins  to  slough  off.  It  will  pay  the  owners  of 
large  orchards  to  purchase  a  lye-dipping  machine  such 
as  is  used  in  the  canneries  and  known  as  a  "Grass- 
hopper" for  this  purpose.  The  machine  is  not  very  ex- 
pensive and  would  more  than  pay  for  itself  in  a  single 
season. 

Conditions  may  arise,  through  a  failure  to  thin  prop- 
erly or  because  the  orchard  is  not  in  a  thrifty  condition, 
where  many  peaches  may  run  undersized.  In  the  case 
of  Freestones  the  peaches  may  be  halved,  although  the 
expense  is  quite  heavy.  With  Clings  it  is  not  practi- 
cable to  do  this,  and  it  is  not  at  all  uncommon  to  have 
thousands  of  tons  of  fruit  of  this  character  go  to  waste, 
rotting  on  the  ground  because  there  seems  to  be  no 
practical  way  of  handling  it.  I  have  made  experiments 
for  several  years  now  with  such  peaches  and  find  they 
can  be  dried  to  good  advantage  by  removing  the  skins 
by  the  lye  process.  The  peaches  are  dipped  into  the  lye 


28 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Selma  Cling  Peach,  which  gives  promise  of  standing  in  the  lead  of  all  other  varieties  for  canning  purposes 


just  as  they  come  from  the  field.  The  method  of  pro- 
cedure is  as  follows:  Dissolve  one  pound  of  lye  to  ten 
gallons  of  water.  Place  the  peaches  in  a  perforated 
bucket  and  immerse  them  in  the  solution  for  about  a 
minute.  The  length  of  time  is  easily  determined  by  the 
manner  in  which  the  skins  peel  off  in  the  cold  water  dip 
which  they  must  be  given  to  remove  traces  of  lye. 
The  temperature  of  the  water  must  be  at  boiling  point. 
The  fruit  is  then  placed  on  trays,  exposed  to  the  sulphur 
fumes  just  like  the  fruit  which  has  been  halved,  and 
then  placed  in  the  sun  to  dry.  In  order  that  the  fruit 
may  dry  uniformly  the  trays  should  be  shaken  occa- 
sionally so  that  all  sides  of  the  fruit  will  be  exposed  to 
the  sun's  rays.  Peaches  handled  by  this  process  have 
a  distinct  character,  for  it  is  found  when  the  fruit  is 
cooked  that  the  pit  imparts  a  very  delicate  flavor  to  it. 

IRRIGATION 

To  promote  a  healthy,  vigorous  tree  during  the  first 
three  years  it  is  necessary  to  irrigate  the  trees  unless 
they  have  been  planted  in  a  district  where  the  annual 
rainfall,  with  thorough  cultivation,  is  sufficient  to  cause 
the  trees  to  grow  vigorously.  When  the  trees  have 
reached  bearing  age  they  should  be  irrigated  just  after 
thinning  and  again  a  short  time  before  the  fruit  is 


gathered.  Never  forget  that  thorough  cultivation  is 
very  necessary  indeed  after  each  irrigation  to  conserve 
the  moisture  in  the  ground. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Admiral  Dewey,  Alexander,  Brigg's  Red  May,  El- 
berta,  Foster,  Greensboro,  Male's  Early,  Heath  Cling, 
Levy's  Late,  Libbee  Cling,  Lovell,  Mayflower,  Mc- 
Devitt's  Cling,  Muir,  Phillips'  Cling,  Salway,  Selma 
Cling,  Sims'  Cling,  Sneed,  Tuscan  Cling,  Wheatland. 

NAMED  IN  THE  ORDER  IN  WHICH  THEY  RIPEN 
May 

Sneed,  Greensboro,  Mayflower,  Oklahoma  Beauty, 
Oklahoma  Queen. 

June 

Alexander,  Brigg's  Red  May,  Hale's  Early,  Admiral 
Dewey,  Triumph,  Early  Imperial,  Yellow  St.  John. 

July 

Foster,  Early  Crawford,  Sims'  Cling,  Strawberry, 
J.  H.  Hale,  Elberta,  Tuscan,  Blood  Cling. 

August 

Morris  White,  Selma  Cling,  Muir,  Lemon  -Cling, 
Lovell,  Royal  George,  Runyon's  Orange  Cling.  Seller's 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


29 


Orange  Cling,  Wheatland.  Susquehanna,  Late  Craw- 
ford, McDevitt's  Cling,  McKevitt's  Cling,  Libbee 
Cling,  Sims'  Cling,  Phillips'  Cling. 

September 
George's  Late  Cling,  Heath  Cling,  Salway. 

October 
Bilyeu's  Late,  Ward's  Late,  Levy's  Late. 

THE  NECTARINE 

There  is  a  mistaken  idea  that  the  nectarine  is  a  cross 
between  the  peach  and  something  else.  As  a  matter  of 
fact  it  is  nothing  more  or  less  than  a  smooth-skinned 
peach.  Nectarines  can  be  grown  in  any  section  where 
the  peach  thrives.  The  nectarine  bears  fully  as  well  as 
the  peach,  and  for  canning,  drying  and  shipping  it  has 
so  many  points  in  its  favor  it  is  difficult  indeed  to  .com- 
prehend why  planters  have  not  engaged  in  nectarine 
culture  more  extensively  than  they  have.  In  England 
and  on  the  continent  of  Europe  the  nectarine  can  only 
be  grown  to  advantage  under  glass.  It  is  prized  there 
more  highly  than  any  other  variety  of  stone  fruit.  The 
prices  realized  are  exceedingly  high.  As  the  nectarine 
has  identically  the  same  habit  as  the  peach  the  cultural 
directions  are  the  same,  therefore  any  additional  in- 
structions would  be  superfluous. 

SEASON  OF  RIPENING 

June 
Early  Newington. 

July 
Gower,  New  White,  Boston,  Advance,  Lord  Napier. 

August 
Hardwick,   Humboldt,  Victoria,  Stanwick. 


THE  QUINCE 

The  quince  comes-in  at  a  season  of  the  year  when 
practically  all  other  fruits  for  preserving  purposes  are 
disposed  of.  California  conditions,  both  in  the  interior 
valleys  and  through  the  coast  sections,  are  well  adapted 
to  its  culture.  The  trees  are  enormous  bearers  and  in 
the  fall  of  the  year  when  loaded  down  with  their  heavy 
crops  of  large,  light,  lemon-colored  fruits,  they  are 
strikingly  ornamental.  For  delicateness  of  flavor 
there  is  no  jelly  superior  to  that  of  the  quince.  The 
fruits  when  cooked  are  very  desirable  for  table  use. 
In  California  the  demand  even  in  our  largest  cities 
has  never  been  heavy.  The  inspiration  to  plant  more 
quinces  is  evidently  coming  from  our  Middle  West 
and  Eastern  neighbors.  They  are  taking  the  few  car- 
loads which  are  now  being  produced  and  paying  fancy 
prices  to  the  growers.  Quince  culture  has  a  future  in 
California  and  those  growers  who  are  far  sighted  enough 
will  not  fail  to  plant  a  few  quince  trees  in  connection 
with  their  plantings  of  other  fruits.  The  Smyrna 
quince  is  particularly  well  adapted  to  the  interior  sec- 
tions, due  to  its  very  heavy  foliage.  The  quince  does 
remarkably  well  in  alluvial  soils,  and  even  on  soils  which 


are  inclined  to  remain  wet  a  considerable  length  of  time 
during  the  growing  season.  As  the  trees  are  of  a  dwarf 
habit  they  should  be  planted  from  fifteen  feet  to  twenty 
feet  apart.  The  quince  is  grown  on  its  own  root.  The 
general  practice  is  to  plant  the  Angers  quince  cuttings 
and  bud  the  named  varieties  on  this  stock.  The  trees 
should  be  trained  to  a  single  stem  and  headed  at  about 
twenty  inches.  As  the  tree  is  of  a  low,  spreading  habit, 
it  should  be  trained  to  a  wide  goblet  form.  To  secure 
a  well  shaped  tree  it  is  very  essential  to  thin  out  and 
prune  the  trees  back  severely  for  the  first  three  years. 
To  develop  fruit  spurs  and  to  keep  the  heavy  fruits 
close  in  and  to  help  the  trees  to  sustain  their  large  crops 
without  breaking  down  under  their  burden,  the  cutting 
back  and  thinning  out  of  the  young  growth  should  be 
an  annual  winter's  job.  The  trees  are  very  much  in- 
clined to  sucker  from  the  root,  and  if  their  vitality  is  to 
be  conserved  these  suckers  must  be  removed.  Quinces 
should  be  gathered  as  soon  as  they  are  matured.  They 
will  keep  for  several  months  without  any  particular 
attention  if  stored  under  cover  where  there  is  a  circula- 
tion of  air  and  where  the  temperature  is  fairly  uniform. 

TIME  OF  RIPENING 
September 

Apple   or   Orange,    Champion,    Pineapple,    Meech's 
Prolific. 

October 
Rea's  Mammoth,  Smyrna. 


THE  ALMOND 

In  normal  times  we  import  nine  thousand  tons  of 
almonds  and  our  annual  production  is  three  thousand 
tons.  It  requires  no  great  amount  of  discernment  to 
fully  understand  that  almond  culture  in  California  is 
only  in  its  infancy.  It  has  had  many  conditions  to  con- 
tend with  which  have  held  it  in  check.  The  European 
varieties  introduced  in  the  early  days  never  bore  well, 
and  then  again  many  orchards  were  planted  in  localities 
subject  to  cold  weather  in  the  spring  months  where, 
on  account  of  the  tendency  of  the  trees  to  bloom 
early  the  crop  was  severely  curtailed.  The  intro- 
duction of  the  Hatch  varieties  in  the  early  eighties 
overcame  the  first  problem,  and  the  second  one  has  been 
mastered  by  the  choosing  of  localities  suited  to  their 
culture.  The  trees  do  well  even  in  heavy  soils  if  well 
drained.  The  tendency  has  been  to  plant  almond  or- 
chards on  soils  more  or  less  loamy  but  well  mixed  with 
gravel.  The  trees  are  rapid  growers  and  attain  large 
size  in  time,  therefore  they  should  be  planted  from 
twenty-five  to  thirty  feet  apart.  There  are  many 
sections  in  the  great  interior  valleys  and  in  many 
of  the  Coast  counties,  noticeably  San  Luis  Obispo,  thirty 
miles  inland,  where  almonds  are  an  assured  success. 
Thousands  of  acres  have  been  planted  in  recent  years 
in  this  county.  The  very  fact  that  the  rainfall  is  ample, 
combined  with  the  necessary  elevation,  overcoming  the 
danger  of  injury  to  either  the  blossoms  or  nuts  when  in 
their  formative  stage,  has  had  much  to  do  with  the  ex- 
tensive acreage  planted  to  almonds  in  the  aforesaid 


30 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Three-year-old  Almond  tree,  illustrating  method  of  prun- 
ing. Had  the  tree  not  been  pruned  in  this  manner  the 
wide-open  top  could  not  have  been  secured. 


county.  A  well  drained,  warm  soil  and  a  locality  where 
there  is  not  a  too  frequent  occurrence  of  frost  are  the 
necessary  requisites  to  make  almond  culture  a  success. 

STOCKS 

The  almond  and  peach  roots  are  used  exclusively  for 
the  growing  of  almonds.  There  is  a  preference  for  the 
almond  root,  because  it  sends  its  roots  down  deeper  into 
the  ground  and  the  consensus  of  opinion  is  that  trees 
are  not  only  stronger  growers  but  live  longer  on  the 
almond  than  on  the  peach.  The  almond  is  really  a  very 
long-lived  tree,  and  whether  on  peach  or  almond,  pro- 
viding the  soil  conditions  are  right,  I  have  never  ob- 
served any  great  difference  in  the  longevity  of  the  trees 
on  either  root. 

CLASSIFICATION 

The  sweet  almonds  are  divided  into  the  following 
grades:  hard  shell,  soft  shell  and  paper  shell.  The  hard- 
shell variety  has  no  commercial  value  except  for  raising 
stocks  for  budding  and  grafting  other  varieties.  These 
have  six  ounces  or  less  of  kernel  to  the  pound  of  nuts. 
The  soft  shell  has  six  to  eight  ounces  of  kernel  to  the 
pound  of  nuts  and  the  paper  shell  ten  ounces  or  more. 
There  is  one  exception,  viz.,  the  famous  Jordan, 
which  is  a  hard  shell  with  its  fixed  type  of  elongated 
kernel  and  a  flavor  superior  to  all  other  almonds. 
Cross-pollination  is  one  of  the  interesting  phases 
in  connection  with  almond  culture,  and  although 
no  exhaustive  experiments  have  been  made  to  deter- 
mine how  far-reaching  this  is,  alternating  three  to  six 
rows  of  a  variety  has  a  very  marked  effect  in  improving 
the  yield. 

PRUNING 

When  planting  almond  trees  the  instructions  relative 
to  other  trees  as  given  in  the  introduction  should  be 
followed.  The  trees  after  being  set  should  be  headed  to 
twenty  inches  from  the  ground.  During  the  first  year 


allow  the  numerous  shoots  to  grow  without  any  inter- 
ference and  in  the  early  winter  months  thin  out  the 
laterals  so  that  the  lowest  ones  will  not  be  closer  than 
ten  inches  from  the  ground,  not  leaving  more  than 
four  to  form  the  head  of  the  tree.  Even  if  they  have 
made  a  growth  of  from  three  to  four  feet,  cut  them  back 
severely.  Because  almonds  should  not  be  pruned  much 
in  later  years,  do  not  hesitate  to  prune  when  they  re- 
quire your  trained  eye  and  hand  to  shape  them  prop- 
erly and  create  a  form  and  a  head  which  can  only  be 
secured  by  severe  cutting.  If  there  is  any  one  object 
I  have  in  view,  it  is  to  impress  the  man  who  aspires  to  be 
a  fruit  grower  to  remember  that  his  success  for  at  least 
the  first  eight  years  of  his  undertaking  is  dependent 
absolutely  on  a  few  essentials,  and  the  pruning  of  his 
trees  is  one  of  the  most  important  for  at  least  the  first 
four  years  of  their  existence. 

The  second  and  third  winters  cut  off  at  least  from 
one-third  to  one-half  of  their  growth.  The  fourth 
winter,  the  tree  now  having  become  sturdy  and  as- 
sumed the  goblet  form,  which  is  ideal,  confine  your 
pruning  to  the  thinning  out  of  objectionable  branches, 
and  remove  laterals  where  there  is  a  tendenc}r  to  over- 
crowding, so  as  to  permit  light  and  air  to  circulate 
through  the  trees. 

GATHERING 

In  Europe  there  is  quite  a  trade  established  in  the 
sale  of  "green  almonds."  Such  almonds  are  sold  just 
as  soon  as  the  kernel  has  passed  from  the  glutinous 
stage  to  the  white  meaty  form.  As  a  dessert  nut  it  is 
very  delicious  and  I  have  every  reason  to  believe  when 
the  value  of  the  nut  for  table  purposes  is  more  generally 
known  that  the  local  demand  will  not  only  increase  very 
rapidly  but  shipments  will  be  made  to  the  Eastern 
markets.  Almonds  should  be  harvested  as  soon  as  the 
hulls  commence  to  split  open.  Much  time  and  labor  is 
saved  by  spreading  a  canvas  under  the  tree  and  shaking 
the  branches.  All  the  nuts  which  do  not  fall  should  be 
jarred  off  by  using  a  light  pole.  In  orchards  of  a  con- 
siderable size  the  hulling  is  done  by  machinery.  Where 
there  are  only  a  few  trees  it  can  be  done  by  hand.  After 
the  nuts  are  taken  from  the  hulls  they  are  placed  on 
trays  and  exposed  to  the  sun  to  dry.  Care  should  be 
exercised  not  to  over-dry  the  almonds.  The  proper 
degree  of  dryness  is  readily  determined  by  taking  a 
kernel  between  the  fingers  and  if  it  breaks  readily 
without  bending,  the  almond  is  cured.  To  meet  the 
trade  requirements  it  is  necessary  to  bleach  almonds. 
This  is  done  by  sprinkling  them  with  water  and  ex- 
posing them  to  sulphur  fumes  for  thirty  minutes  or 
longer.  The  color  should  be  yellowish  white.  In  order 
to  secure  the  proper  shade  it  is  advisable  to  get  some 
samples  from  a  dealer  as  a  guide  to  obtain  the  right 
color.  A  few  hours'  exposure  to  the  sun  after  being 
bleached  is  all  that  is  necessary  and  they  are  then  ready 
to  be  sacked. 

IRRIGATION 

The  almond  sends  its  heavy  roots  very  deeply  into 
the  soil  searching  for  moisture.  For  that  matter  the 
peach  will  do  this  also,  but  thorough  cultivation  is  very 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


31 


32 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


The  Chestnut  possesses  the  distinction  of  not  only  being  a 
a  very  profitable  fruit  tree,  but  is  equally  adaptable  as  an 
avenue  or  border  tree.  Once  the  head  is  formed  all  it- 
requires  is  the  cutting  out  of  interfering  branches.  This 
tree  is  the  Marron  Combale  in  the  trial  orchard  of  the 
California  Nursery  Company. 


necessary  to  bring  this  about.  Almonds  will  thrive 
under  conditions  as  far  as  water  is  concerned  which 
would  be  fatal  to  many  other  varieties  of  fruit  trees. 
This  does  not  mean  that  they  will  grow  without  irriga- 
tion, for  in  localities  where  the  average  rainfall  does 
not  exceed  eight  inches  per  annum  to  attempt  to  grow 
almonds  without  irrigating  the  orchard  would  be  fool- 
•hardy.  When  the  trees  are  young,  that  is  up  to  the 
fourth  year,  they  should  receive  the  same  care  that  is 
bestowed  on  any  other  deciduous  tree.  When  they 
have  reached  the  age  of  bearing,  an  irrigation  in  the 
month  of  June  followed  by  thorough  cultivation  is 
sufficient.  In  the  fall  of  the  year  if  the  trees  show  signs 
of  wilting,  an  application  of  water  is  very  beneficial 
to  the  tree,  for  it  causes  the  leaves  and  fruiting  buds 
to  fill  out  and  adds  to  its  vitality  when  it  takes  on  its 
new  growth  the  following  spring. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Drake's  Seedling,  I.  X.  L.,  Jordan,  Ne  Plus  .Ultra, 
Nonpareil,  Peerless,  Texas  Prolific. 

PERIOD  OF  RIPENING 

The  harvesting  commences  in  August  and  ends  in  the 
early  part  of  September. 

In  recent  years  the  interest  which  has  been  mani- 
fested on  the  part  of  growers  in  the  planting  of  al- 
monds, has  been  very  marked  indeed.  Conditions 
prevail  in  California  which  should  cause  the  industry 
to  advance  very  rapidly  and  eventually  make  it  the 
center  of  production  for  the  entire  world. 


THE   CHESTNUT 

There  are  so  many  points  in  favor  of  the  chestnut 
that  it  is  very  difficult  indeed  to  understand  why  the 
culture  of  this  nut  has  not  long  before  this  become  one 
of  our  leading  industries.  Aside  from  the  fact  that  the 
trees  are  very  ornamental,  the  certainty  of  a  crop  one 
year  with  another  should  have  caused  them  to  be 
planted  on  an  extensive  scale.  By  heading  the  trees 
low  it  is  practical  to  grow  them  in  the  interior  valleys. 
However,  from  a  standpoint  of  profit  they  should  only 
be  planted  in  the  deep,  alluvial,  silty  soils  found  in  our 
river  bottoms.  Strictly  speaking  the  chestnut  should  be 
planted  in  the  Coast  sections,  where  there  is  an  abun- 
dance of  rain  and  where  the  temperatures  never  run  up 
very  high  due  to  the  influence  of  fogs  and  cold  air  from 
the  ocean.  The  chestnut  grows  vigorously  in  such  sec- 
tions and  where  in  addition  to  this  there  are  frequent 
occurrences  of  rain  during  the  summer  months,  so  much 
the  better.  The  trees  will  withstand  extremes  of  cold 
weather  during  the  winter.  They  do  not  bloom  until 
May,  when  all  danger  from  late  frosts  are  over  with. 
The  great  coastal  regions  of  Oregon  and  Washington 
are  so  well  suited  to  their  culture  it  seems  very  strange 
indeed  that  some  enterprising  horticulturist '  has  not 
exploited  the  possibilities  of  this  industry  long  before 
this.  In  my  travels  in  the  great  Northwest  section  I 
became  impressed  a  number  of  years  ago  with  the  oppor- 
tunity so  much  in  evidence  there  for  growing  chestnuts. 
I  have  seen  trees  growing  in  pastures  and  on  hillsides 


The  Pecan  must  be  shaped  while  it  is  young,  but  after  it  is 
started  properly,  the  only  pruning  required  is  to  .remove 
interfering  branches.  This  tree  is  the  Stuart,  one  of  the 
paper-shell  varieties. 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


33 


with  no  care  and  still  they  were  loaded  to  the  guards 
with  nuts.  Chestnut  culture  has  always  been  a  prob- 
lem in  the  Eastern  States  when  it  came  to  growing 
European  and  Japanese  types,  and  now  that  the  blight 
has  made  such  a  serious  invasion  into  the  great  chestnut 
forests  of  the  East,  there  can  be  no  possible  excuse  for 
the  Pacific  Coast  States  not  engaging  in  this  industry 
which  is  so  promising.  The  trees  attain  a  very  old  age 
and  a  great  size.  The  grafted  varieties  should  always 
be  given  the  preference,  for  they  not  only  come  into 
bearing  earlier  but  in  addition  to  this  the  nuts  are  of 
uniform  size  and  shape.  For  orchard  planting  the 
trees  should  never  be  planted  closer  than  thirty  feet. 
As  an  avenue  or  border  tree  there  is  nothing  more 
beautiful  than  the  chestnut. 

PRUNING 

After  the  head  of  the  tree  is  once  formed  its  pruning 
in  subsequent  years  should  be  confined  to  the  removal 
of  interfering  branches  and  to  the  checking  of  the  growth 
of  a  branch  which  may  be  drawing  the  tree  out  of  shape. 

STOCKS 

Seedlings  for  budding  and  grafting  the  Improved 
French  and  Japanese  varieties  are  raised  from  seeds  of 
the  Italian  chestnut  (Castanea  vesca). 

GATHERING  AND  STORING 

Chestnuts  are  gathered  in  October.  In  the  warmer 
sections,  where  during  the  summer  months  there  is  no 
rain,  they  ripen  earlier  than  this.  As  soon  as  the  burrs 
begin  to  split  open  they  are  knocked  off  the  trees  with 
poles.  The  nuts  that  do  not  come  out  of  the  burrs  in 
falling  from  the  tree  are  picked  out  by  hand.  They  are 
then  packed  in  barrels  and  shipped  to  market.  They 
will  keep  for  some  time  if  handled  in  this  manner  with- 
out deteriorating.  To  keep  them  in  good  condition  for 
a  number  of  months  they  should  be  placed  in  a  recep- 
tacle and  have  boiling  water  poured  over  them.  After 
being  immersed  for  fifteen  to  twenty  minutes,  spread 
them  out  on  trays  until  they  are  dry. 

VARIETIES  OF  COMMERCIAL  VALUE 

Marron  de  Lyon,  Marron  Combale,  Numbo,  Para- 
gon, Ridgely. 

THE  PECAN 

Of  the  eight  or  nine  species  of  hickories  the  one  which 
produces  the  most  marketable  fruit  and  in  the  most 
profitable  quantities  is  the  pecan.  A  native  of  the 
Southern  States,  it  is  today  the  only  nut  (which  has  any 
commercial  importance)  which  is  grown  there,  and 
to  a  limited  extent  in  the  Middle  States.  Texas  is 
probably  the  largest  producer  of  pecans,  the  crop 
aggregating  several  millions  of  pounds.  Gathered 
largely  from  seedling  trees.  The  business  of  cracking 
pecans  and  selling  the  meats  put  up  in  attractive  pack- 
ages has  created  a  demand  for  the  nuts  which  is  in- 
creasing at  a  very  rapid  rate.  It  is  largely  due  to  the 
impetus  the  industry  has  received  in  recent  years  that 
has  encouraged  the  planting  of  trees  on  a  commercial 


scale  of  the  improved  paper-shell  types.  The  difficulty 
of  extracting  the  meat  from  the  hard-shell  seedling  nuts 
has  been  one  of  the  causes  for  their  not  being  more 
popular  as  a  dessert  fruit.  The  thin  shells  of  the  im- 
proved types,  the  ease  with  which  the  meats  are  re- 
moved, and  the  noticeable  absence  of  the  fibrous  seg- 
ments found  in  the  hard-shell  nuts,  which  possess  a 
peculiar  acrid  taste,  will  do  much  to  make  them  popular. 

Old  seedling  pecan  trees  are  found  growing  and  pro- 
ducing heavy  crops  annually  in  the  Sacramento  and 
San  Joaquin  valleys.  A  number  of  seedling  trees,  two 
feet  and  over  in  diameter,  are  growing  one  mile  north 
of  Fresno,  bearing  abundant  crops. 

It  is  only  within  the  last  ten  years  that  pecans  have 
been  regarded  of  sufficient  commercial  importance  to 
cause  groves  to  be  planted  in  the  Middle  and  Southern 
States,  and  the  condition  of  affairs  has  been  brought 
about  by  the  unexcelled  merit  of  the  paper-shell  pecan. 
In  California  only  a  very  few  paper-shells  are  to  be 
found;  none  of  these  are  over  fifteen  years  old,  with  the 
most  complete  assortment  of  varieties  growing  on  one 
of  my  properties. 

CONDITIONS  FAVORING  ITS  GROWTH 

The  trees  thrive  in  a  great  variety  of  soils,  doing 
well  in  a  stiff  clay  or  porous  sand,  and  in  Texas  they 
are  said  to  do  well  on  soils  underlaid  with  hardpan,  pro- 
vided proper  precautions  are  taken  to  blast  it  before 
planting.  The  planting  of  trees  should  be  confined  to 
soils  where  moisture  is  either  supplied  by  natural  means 
or  irrigation.  Pecans  will  prove  a  valuable  acquisition 
to  our  list  of  nut  fruits  in  the  warm  interior  valleys  of 
California,  Oregon  and  Washington.  In  the  coast 
counties,  although  the  tree  grows  well,  it  does  not  ma- 
ture its  nuts,  due  to  the  cool,  foggy  weather,  which  does 
not  seem  conducive  to  the  proper  development  of  the 
nuts  before  the  dormant  season  sets  in. 

For  planting  along  irrigation  ditches,  the  pecan  is 
the  ideal  tree,  as  it  will  thrive  without  cultivation  and 
ripens  its  nuts  after  the  water  is  turned  out  of  the 
ditches. 

The  advisability  of  planting  only  named  varieties  of 
grafted  or  budded  trees  is  conceded  by  experienced 
planters.  When  trees  are  grown  from  selected  paper- 
shell  seeds,  they  are  liable  to  produce  nuts  of  variable 
character  in  shape,  size,  thickness  of  shell  and  quality 
of  meat.  The  additional  cost  of  growing  named  varie- 
ties either  by  budding  or  grafting  is  caused  by  the  very 
small  percentage  which  a  nurseryman  succeeds  in  grow- 
ing. If  the  orchardist  will  only  bear  in  mind  that  the 
increased  outlay  for  budded  or  grafted  trees  is  offset  by 
the  fact  that  they  will  come  into  bearing  in  less  than 
half  the  time  that  seedlings  do,  and  that  the  nuts  will 
sell  for  four  times  as  much  on  the  market,  their  economy 
is  at  once  obvious. 

The  pecan,  like  the  walnut,  is  unisexual;  that  is,  the 
male  and  female  organs  are  not  in  the  same  blossom. 
It  sometimes  happens  that  the  male  blooms  (catkins) 
mature  and  release  their  pollen  grains  before  the  pistil- 
late or  female  bloom  is  in  the  receptive  stage,  and  when 
this  occurs  the  nuts  are  hollow  shells  and  it  is  therefore 
advisable  in  planting  a  pecan  grove  to  plant  two  or 


34 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


There  are  many  sections  in  California  where  the  Pecan  will  be  extensively  grown.      The  grafted  Paper  Shell  Pecans 
have  so  many  points  in  their  favor  that  they  should  be  given  the  preference  over  the  ordinary  seedlings. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


35 


three  varieties  and  alternate  with  several  rows  of  each. 
Trees  should  be  planted  not  closer  than  forty  feet,  and 
on  rich  bottom  soils  fifty  feet  apart.  It  is  entirely  prac- 
ticable to  plant  some  other  fruit  between  temporarily 
until  the  pecan  commences  to  bear  profitable  crops, 
when  the  other  trees  can  be  dug  up.  The  oft-repeated 
remark  that  only  trees  which  have  never  had  their  tap 
root  cut  will  bear,  has  time  and  again  been  shown  to  be 
a  fallacy;  in  fact,  no  harm  will  result  from  the  shorten- 
ing in  of  the  tap  root,  for  the  tree  is  really  benefited  by 
the  more  spreading  root  system.  The  difficulty  of 
securing  a  uniform  stand  and  protecting  the  trees  from 
injury;  the  marked  variation  in  the  size  of  the  trees 
when  the  nuts  are  planted  in  the  orchard  where  the 
trees  are  to  grow,  has  further  discouraged  this  method 
of  procedure.  Remarks  pertaining  to  the  pruning  of 
walnut  trees  are  applicable  to  the  pecan.  Much  diffi- 
culty has  been  met  with  in  transplanting  pecans.  This 
can  be  overcome  by  cutting  the  tree  down  to  within 
six  inches  of  the  bud  and  hilling  soil  around  the  tree 
until  it  starts  to  grow,  when  the  soil  may  be  drawn 
away. 

THE  HARVESTING    . 

The  pecan  ripens  its  nuts  in  October.  No  attempt 
should  be  made  to  gather  the  nuts  until  the  hulls  show 
a  tendency  to  split  open  When  this  occurs  the  nuts 
may  be  knocked  from  the  tree  with  light  poles  and 
gathered  up  from  the  ground.  Spread  them  out  on 
trays  and  expose  them  to  the  sun  until,  when  the  nuts 
are  cracked,  the  kernel  is  found  to  break  readily  when 
pressed  between  the  fingers.  This  is  an  indication  that 
the  nuts  have  been  dried  sufficiently.  The  nuts  may 
then  be  stored  in  a  dry  place,  where  they  will  keep  in 
the  very  best  of  condition  for  a  number  of  months. 

VARIETIES     WHICH     HAVE     PROVED      MERI- 
TORIOUS IN  CALIFORNIA 

Frotscher,  Pabst,  Russell,  Schley,  Stuart,  Success 
Van  Deman. 


THE  PISTACHIO 

Comparatively  little  is  known  about  the  pistachio, 
or  green  almond.  It  is  particularly  well  adapted  to  the 
warm  interior  valleys.  The  nuts  have  a  flavor  which 
makes  them  very  inviting  when  eaten  out  of  the  hand. 
They  must  be  processed,  however.  This  is  done  by 
soaking  them  in  a  brine  made  by  dissolving  four  pounds 
of  salt  to  a  gallon  of  water.  They  are  then  roasted  and 
this  causes  the  shells  to  open  slightly.  Of  all  the  candy 
we  buy,  there  is  none  more  expensive  than  that  which 
is  flavored  and  colored  with  the  pistache  nut.  It  is 
known  as  pistache  candy  and  it  possesses  a  delicacy  of 
flavor  found  in  no  other  sweetmeat.  The  trees  are 
dioecious;  that  is,  the  male  flowers  are  produced  on  one 
tree  and  the  female  on  another.  The  tree  is  of  a  spread- 
ing habit  and  low-growing.  This  is  particularly  the 
case  with  the  Pistacia  vera,  which  is  the  variety  pro- 
ducing the  nuts  of  commerce.  For  commercial  planting 
it  is  necessary  to  have  one  tree  of  the  male  type  to  ten 
of  the  female.  The  latter  trees  when  loaded  down  with 
their  large  grape-like  clusters  of  nuts  are  strikingly 


As  the  Pistachio  tree  is  very  hardy  and  is  not  particular  in 
its  requirement  of  soil,  its  culture  will  undoubtedly 
develop  into  a  very  important  industry.  This  tree_is 
twenty  years  old. 

beautiful.  The  trees  are  of  very  easy  culture,  thrive 
on  a  great  variety  of  soils  and  are,  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
very  much  hardier  than  the  fig  and  the  olive.  As  border 
trees  they  are  very  attractive,  and  I  have  every  reason 
to  believe  they  will  prove  quite  profitable.  They  would 
be  used  by  the  foreign  population  much  more  exten- 
sively than  they  are  if  the  price  at  which  they  are  sold, 
from  sixty  to  eighty  cents  per  pound,  was  not  so  high. 
The  importations  are  estimated  to  average  $200,000  per 
annum.  There  is  no  question  about  the  future  of  this 
industry,  though  up  to  the  present  time  it  is  still  in  the 
experimental  stage.  It  is  largely  through  the  efforts  of 
the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  of  the  United  States  De- 
partment of  Agriculture  that  varieties  of  merit  have 
been  introduced  in  recent  years.  I  am  giving  now,  and 
have  given  for  several  years,  considerable  time  and 
thought  to  the  culture  of  this  nut,  and  I  am  confident 
that  the  time  is  not  far  distant  when  it  will  become  an- 
other valuable  acquisition  to  our  list  of  horticultural 
products. 

THE  WALNUT 

This  tree  prefers  a  rather  loamy,  deep,  rich  soil,  and 
when  so  planted  no  nut  yields  larger  and  more  profitable 
returns.  The  tree  is  practically  free  from  insect  pests, 
and  when  once  established  requires  little  care  as  far  as 
pruning  is  concerned.  Good  and  thorough  cultivation 
is  necessary  for  activity  in  the  growth  of  the  tree,  caus- 
ing it  to  respond  with  bountiful  crops.  The  planting  of 
seedling  walnut  trees  has  been  generally  abandoned  on 


36 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


account  of  the  many  advantages  of  grafted  trees,  which 
may  be  summed  up  as  follows:  (1)  they  usually  com- 
mence to  bear  profitable  crops  much  earlier  than  seed- 
lings; (2)  they  reproduce  the  variety  from  which  buds 
and  grafts  were  taken,  so  there  is  an  absolute  certainty 
that  the  character  of  the  parent  tree  will  be  transferred 
to  the  young  stock;  (3)  perpetuation  of  the  bearing 
qualities  of  the  parent  tree  with  nuts  of  identical  quality. 
These  points  form  the  basis  of  success  for  the  grower, 
and  the  extra  prices  realized  for  the  product  of  the 
grafted  trees  in  connection  with  their  early  bearing 
qualities  more  than  offsets  the  additional  first  outlay. 
In  addition  to  other  facts  mentioned,  the  California 
Black  Walnut  (Juglans  Californica)  root,  which  is 
used  as  a  stock,  has  a  decided  influence  in  causing  the 
graft  to  grow  more  vigorously  and  it  will  also  adapt 
itself  to  a  wider  range  of  soil  conditions  than  trees  on 
their  own  roots. 

HOW  TO  PLANT 

For  commercial  planting,  trees  are  usually  set  forty 
feet  each  way,  although  in  some  instances,  where  the 
soil  is  exceptionally  fertile,  trees  are  set  fifty  feet  apart, 
for  as  the  tree  matures  it  makes  a  wide-spreading  top, 
so  that  it  is  no  uncommon  sight  to  see  branches  even  at 
the  latter  distance  interlacing. 


A  grafted  Walnut  tree  just  from 
the  nursery. 


The  same  tree  topped  and  root- 
pruned  for  planting. 


All  the  talk  that  the  cutting  of  the  tap  root  of  the 
walnut  interferes  with  its  bearing  qualities  is  mere 
twaddle.  Practically  all  the  orchards  in  California  are 
transplanted  trees. 

PRUNING 

Even  if  the  trees  are  ten  feet  high,  they  should  be  cut 
back  to  three  and  one-half  feet  from  the  ground  after 
being  set.  In  the  interior  valleys  growers  have  even 
found  it  expedient  at  times  to  cut  trees  down  to  twelve 
inches  and  train  up  a  new  stem.  If  there  are  any  ad- 
vantages in  this  plan  of  procedure,  they  are  evidenced 
by  the  tremendous  vigor  and  the  prevention  of  sunburn 
of  the  new  shoot,  which  must  of  course  be  staked  the 
first  year.  The  coined  expressions  that  this  tree  or  that 
should  not  be  pruned  because  it  would  be  ruined,  has 
had  the  tentacles  of  misapprehension  more  closely  inter- 
woven around  the  walnut  than  possibly  any  other  tree. 
Which  is  preferable,  the  tree  with  all  its  fruit-bearing 
wood  in  the  very  top  or  the  one  that  is  liberally  supplied 
with  laterals  as  nearly  as  it  can  be  obtained  from  the 
point  from  which  the  head  is  started?  If  you  can  secure 
a  more  striking  tree  with  a  broad-bearing  surface,  is  it 
not  common  sense  to  suppose  that  you  are  not  going  to 
reach  the  goal  you  are  aiming  at,  if  you  don't  do  some- 
thing to  check  the  growth  of  the  framework  branches? 

No  person  of  intelligence  will  deny  the  fact  that  one's 
arm  held  at  length  has  not  the  strength  to  resist  the 
same  strain  as  when  the  forearm  is  held  at  right  angles 
to  the  arm. 

The  same  principle  applies  to  the  main  limbs  of  the 
tree.  The  development  of  elbows  promotes  strength, 
increased  bearing  surface  and  a  perfect  tree.  Cut  back 
the  framework  branches  one-half  the  first  winter  after 
planting  in  the  orchard.  Cut  back  the  leaders  but 
not  quite  so  severely  the  second  winter,  and  thin  out 
if  there  is  a  tendency  toward  overcrowding.  The  treat- 
ment should  be  more  moderate  in  the  third  winter,  and 
in  the  fourth  year  the  checking  of  rampant  limbs  which 
have  a  tendency  to  outstrip  their  neighbors 
is  all  that  is  necessary. 


SPECIAL  FEATURES 

The  holes  for  planting  should  not  be  less 
than  three  feet  deep  and  two  feet  in 
diameter.  Cut  the  tap  root  off  at  about 
twenty-four  inches  and  trim  off  all  bruised 
and  broken  lateral  roots  before  planting. 
A  liberal  application  of  thick  whitewash, 
in  which  some  salt  or  glue  has  been  dis- 
solved, is  very  beneficial  to  the  body  of  the 
tree,  as  it  prevents  sunburn. 

The  walnut,  like  the  pecan^is  unisexual; 
that  is,  the  flowers  of  both  sexes  although 
produced  on  the  same  tree,  do  not  occur 
in  the  same  flower.  The  male  flowers  are 
called  catkins  and  in  the  spring  are  dis- 
tributed throughout  the  tree  and  look  like 
tassels;  the  female,  flowers  are  like  two 
little  horns  at  the  terminal  ends  of  the  new 
growth. 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


37 


One  of  the  striking  peculiarities  of  the  French  type 
of  walnuts  is  their  late  blooming.  This  peculiar  feature 
of  these  walnuts  was  no  doubt  developed  in  Grenoble, 
France,  where  the  Chaberte,  Franquette,  Mayette  and 
Parisienne  originated.  When  the  French  walnuts  are 
planted  among  such  varieties  as  Santa  Barbara,  Pla- 
centia  Perfection  and  others,  the  difference  is  very 
striking,  for  they  rarely  have  a  bud  swelled  by  the  mid- 
dle of  April,  while  the  varieties  which  have  been  de- 
veloped in  California  will  be  clothed  with  all  their 
foliage. 

Deep  alluvial  soils  should  always  be  selected  for 
planting  walnuts,  and  a  liberal  supply  of  water  should 
be  available,  either  by  surface  irrigation,  or  the  soil  in 
which  the  trees  are  planted  should  be  of  a  moist  nature. 

It  is  only  recently  that  the  San  Joaquin  and  Sacra- 
mento valleys  have  been  found  to  possess  climatic  and 
soil  conditions,  making  the  culture  of  the  walnut  a  very 
profitable  undertaking,  particularly  of  the  French  varie- 
ties grafted  on  California  Black  Walnut  root. 

GATHERING  AND  CURING 

Walnuts  are  gathered  during  the  months  of  Septem- 
ber and  October,  depending  on  the  locality.  The  time 
of  maturity  is  indicated  by  the  cracking  of  the  hulls. 
The  nuts  drop  to  the  ground  and  are  gathered  up  at  in- 
tervals. Any  nuts  sticking  to  the  hulls  may  be  easily 
dislodged  by  jarring  the  tree  or  knocking  them  off  with 
light  poles.  The  nuts  are  taken  from  the  field  to  the 
drying  ground  and  spread  out  on  trays.  Prune  trays 
may  be  used  to  good  advantage  for  this  purpose.  They 
should  be  stirred  occasionally  to  cause  them  to  dry 
uniformly.  After  the  nuts  are  dried,  for  commercial 
purposes  it  is  necessary  to  grade  them  into  several  sizes. 
This  is  done  by  passing  them  over  a  revolving  screen 
having  meshes  three-quarters  of  an  inch  square  at  the 


A  top- worked  Walnut.  Note  the  long  sticks  tied  to  the  grafts 
to  keep  them  from  breaking  off.  A  much  better  and  well 
balanced  tree  would  be  secured,  and  a  much  stronger 
union  at  the  point  of  contact  had  these  grafted  branches 
been  cut  back  severely  the  first  year  of  their  growth,  and 
then  following  this  up  by  shortening  in  and  thinning  out 
the  laterals  for  a  couple  of  yeai  thereafter,  until  the  head 
of  the  tree  was  formed.  The  fallacious  idea  that  pruning 
the  walnut  is  a  detriment  is  responsible  for  just  such  non- 
sensical methods  as  shown  in  this  illustration. 


This  tree  has  been  pruned  for  several  years  to  secure  a 
symmetrical  head.  This  having  now  been  established, 
pruning  in  the  future  will  be  confined  to  cutting  out 
interfering  branches  and  checking  the  growth  of  those 
which  might  cause  the  tree  to  be  drawn  out  of  shape. 


Franquette  Walnut,  one  of  the  most  popular 
of  the  French  introductions 

upper  end  and  one  inch  square  at  the  lower  end.  The 
small  meshes  take  out  the  dirt,  and  the  inch  meshes  take 
out  the  small  nuts,  which  are  called  No.  2  nuts,  while 
those  going  over  the  screen  are  known  as  No.  1  nuts. 
The  drying,  as  a  rule,  is  done  in  the  sun,  although  some 
growers  resort  to  evaporators,  intimating  that  by  this 
method  the  pellicle,  which  is  the  covering  over  the 
kernel,  does  not  become  discolored  to  the  extent  that 
it  does  when  the  nuts  are  dried  in  the  sun.  As  far  as 
my  observation  goes,  unless  the  weather  is  inclement, 
walnuts  under  California  climatic  conditions  may  be 
dried  without  any  detriment  to  the  nut  or  its  quality  in 
the  open.  As  soon  as  the  kernel  is  firm  and  cracks 
readily,  the  nuts  are  dry.  After  the  nuts  are  graded 


38 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


39 


and  washed,  they  are  sulphured  for  about  thirty  min- 
utes. After  passing  through  this  last  process,  they  are 
again  transferred  to  trays,  which  are  stacked  one  above 
another,  the  nuts  remaining  on  them  until  the  moisture 
from  the  processing  has  dried  off.  They  are  now  ready 
for  market.  The  commercial  package  consists  of  a  good 
strong  burlap  sack,  holding  one  hundred  pounds.  Great 
care  must  be  exercised  in  sulphuring  walnuts  to  be  sure 
that  the  kernels  are  dry  and  not  allow  them  to  remain 
in  the  sulphur  fumes  too  great  a  length  of  time,  other- 
wise the  kernels  will  taste  of  sulphur,  which  will  unfit 
then  for  market.  In  the  leading  walnut  sections  of 
California  the  curing  of  walnuts  is  carried  on  by  the  use 
of  bleaching  powders.  The  process  is  very  much 
quicker  and  eliminates  all  danger  of  having  the  kernels 
contaminated.  On  groves  of  some  size,  graders,  dippers, 
sulphuring  and  bleaching  contrivances  are  constructed 
to  facilitate  all  the  operations  referred  to,  with  a  view 
of  not  only  holding  down  the  expense  of  handling  but 
also  to  turn  out  a  more  uniform  product. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Concord,  Eureka,  Franquette,  Mayette,  Placentia 
Perfection,  Santa  Barbara  Soft  Shell. 

VARIETIES  WORTHY  OF  TRIAL 

A'Bijou,  Chaberte,  Cut-leaved,  Mayette  Rouge, 
Monstreuse,  Neff's  Prolific,  Parisienne,  Praeparturiens, 
Vourey,  Willson  Wonder. 

TIMBER  TREES 

American  Black,  California  Black,  Paradox,  Royal. 

THE  FIG 

Figs  grown  in  the  United  States  either  for  eating 
fresh  or  for  drying  are  of  one  species,  viz.:  Ficus 
carica.  There  are  an  endless  number  of  varieties  of 
figs.  In  many  instances,  on  account  of  the  wide  dis- 
tribution of  this  fruit  throughout  the  world,  the  same 
variety  may  be  blessed  with  any  number  of  synonyms. 
This  is  the  case  with  many  sorts  grown  in  California 
today.  Not  over  six  varieties  comprise  the  list  of  com- 
mercial varieties  for  all  purposes  in  California. 

LOCALITIES  FAVORABLE  FOR  THE  FIG 

It  is  safe  to  say  that  no  deciduous  tree  grown  in  the 
semi-tropic  and  temperate  zones  will  adapt  itself  to  a 
wider  range  of  climates  and  soils  than  the  fig.  Figs  can 
be  used  for  such  a  variety  of  purposes,  namely:  drying, 
canning,  preserving,  shipping  in  the  fresh  state  and  for 
home  use,  that  a  wide  range  is  open  for  their  successful 
exploitation.  To  produce  the  finest  dried  figs,  with  the 
thinnest  skin  and  rich  in  sugar,  a  warm,  dry  climate  is 
an  important  factor.  They  will  withstand  a  tempera- 
ture of  18  degrees  Fahrenheit  in  the  winter  months 
without  being  injured;  hence  their  geographical  dis- 
tribution is  very  wide. 

BRIEF  HISTORY 

Many  of  the  countries  whose  shores  are -washed  by 
the  Mediterranean  sea  are  producers  of  figs  commer- 
cially, but  the  recognized  fig  center  of  the  world  today 


*  ft." 


A  Fig  tree  as  it  conies  from  the  nursery.  The  one  to  the 
left  shows  the  method  of  cutting  back  and  root-pruning 
before  planting. 


is  in  the  Meander  valley  about  forty  miles  distant  from 
Smyrna,  Asia  Minor.  It  is  here  that  the  Smyrna  fig 
of  commerce  has  been  grown  for  centuries,  and  the 
secret  of  their  culture  was  so  closely  guarded.  It  was 
only  after  fourteen  years  of  constant  and  persistent 
effort  on  my  part  that  I  succeeded  in  1890  in  producing 
the  first  Smyrna  figs  in  the  United  States  by  artificial 
pollination,  and  ten  years  later,  having  succeeded  in 
establishing  the  Blastophaga  grossorum,  with  the 
assistance  of  the  United  States  Department  of  Agri- 
culture, the  first  Smyrna  figs  were  produced  in  a  com- 
mercial way. 

The  first  figs  introduced  in  the  United  States  were 
brought,  as  nearly  as  can  be  determined,  by  the  Spanish 
Padres  from  Mexico  in  1769.  They  were  planted  at  the 
San  Diego  Mission.  This  fig  is  still  a  standard  in  Cali- 
fornia. The  tree  is  a  great  grower  and  produces  an 
abundance  of  what  is  known  as  the  Breba,  or  first  crop, 
maturing  in  late  June,  and  the  second  crop  ripening 
from  August  to  October.  The  very  fact  that  this  and 
other  varieties  of  figs  were  grown  in  California,  from 
which  abundant  crops  were  being  gathered  annually, 
caused  the  whole  subject  of  caprification  to  be  branded 
as  an  idle  dream.  It  is  now  conceded  that  the  Smyrna, 
type  of  figs  are  in  a  class  by  themselves,  and  unless  the 
pollen  is  conveyed  by  the  Blastophaga  to  the  edible  fig, 
all  the  figs  drop  off  prematurely  when  about  the  size  of 
marbles.  I  knew  this  to  be  a  fact,  for  in  my  orchard  of 
sixty  acres  of  Smyrna  figs,  which  I  cared  for  over  a 
period  of  fourteen  years,  all  the  figs  dropped  off  until 
the  Blastophaga  was  established  in  the  caprifig  trees. 

The  fundamental  difference  between  the  Adriatic  and 
Smyrna  class  of  figs  is  that  the  former  matures  its  fig 
without  the  fig  wasp,  while  the  latter  does  not.  The 
Adriatic  figs  seem  to  possess  all  the  qualities  of  the 


40 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  branch  of  Reeling's  No.  3  Caprifig  with  the  profichi  or  spring:  crop. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


41 


The  Calimyrna  Tig. 


42 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Under  the  Caprifigs;  stringing  the  Capris  on  raffia  fibre  preparatory  to  suspending  the  figs  in  the  Calimyrna  trees. 
This  picture  was  taken  in  1900,  the  year  prior  to  the  author's  trip  to  Smyrna,  Asia  Minor.  Today  the  figs  are  placed 
in  wire  baskets,  or  grape  baskets,  eliminating  the  heavy  labor  expense  and  securing  equally  as  good  results. 


Smyrna  so  far  as  general  appearances  go,  but  on  in- 
vestigation it  will  be  found  that  all  the  seeds  are  hollow, 
while  in  the  Smyrnas  each  seed  contains  a  kernel,  giving 
the  fig  a  nutty  flavor  and  a  delicious  syrupy  sweetness 
found  in  no  other  fig.  The  great  interior  valleys  of 
Calif  ornia,  with  their  favorable  climatic  conditions  (there 
being  no  rain  in  the  summer  months,  and  the  air  being 
both  warm  and  dry)  present  possibilities  which  are  not 
equalled  in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  The  output  of 
Smyrna  is  in  the  neighborhood  of  30,000  tons  annually. 
California  produces  about  10,000  tons  of  dried  White 
Adriatic,  Mission  and  Calimyrna.  The  United  States 
imports  from  10,000  to  13,000  tons  annually.  The  de- 
mand for  figs  for  shipping,  preserving  and  drying  is 
growing  by  leaps  and  bounds,  and  it  is  up  to  the  growers 
to  embrace  their  opportunities  and  engage  in  this,  one 
of  California's  most  promising  industries. 

CAPRIF1CATION 

To  give  even  a  short  review  of  caprification  would 
occupy  pages  of  a  book  several  times  as  large  as  this 
one.  I  merely  wish  to  say  that  for  years  the  subject 
was  regarded  as  an  illusion  by  prominent  horticulturists, 
and  I  was  subjected  to  criticism  and  met  with  discour- 
agements too  innumerable  to  mention,  before  I  finally 
after  many  years  of  persistent  effort,  succeeded  in  con- 


vincing the  skeptics  that  Smyrna  figs  could  not  be 
grown  without  caprification.  Plant  life  has  just  as 
many  intricate  problems  as  human  existence.  We  have 
in  the  fig  a  problem  which  is  beyond  human  ken.  It  is 
very  difficult  indeed  to  give  any  explanation  why  the 
edible  fig,  Ficus  carica,  has  within  its  range  so  many  hun- 
dred varieties  of  figs  which  do  not  require  fertilization 
of  their  flowers  to  produce  edible  fruit,  while  in  the 
Smyrna  type  of  figs  unless  the  flowers  are  pollinated 
the  figs  drop  off  and  never  mature.  The  fig  is  a  fleshy 
receptacle  to  which  is  attached  thousands  of  minute 
flowers.  Botanically,  flowers  grouped  together  like 
this  are  characterized  as  an  inflorescence.  The  fig 
differs  from  practically  all  other  classes  of  plants  in  that 
no  ordinary  insect  can  reach  its  flowers,  because  the 
receptacle  in  which  they  are  enclosed  has  only  one  small 
opening  in  the  apex  of  the  fig,  which  to  all  appearances, 
as  far  as  human  intelligence  and  eyesight  can  discern, 
it  would  be  impossible  for  any  insect  to  enter.  For- 
tunately for  the  thousands  of  people  who  enjoy  eating 
figs,  a  great  many  varieties  mature  their  fruits  and  are 
perfect  from  the  standpoint  of  the  consumer,  although 
scientifically  imperfect,  because  the  flowers  have  not 
been  fertilized  and  the  seeds  are  hollow  shells. 

When  California,  twenty  years  ago,  began  ttf  engage 
in  the  business  of  drying  figs  and  shipping  them  to  the 
east,  it  did  not  take  long  to  discover  that  there  was 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


43 


Blastophaga  grossorum.  A, 
adult  female,  very  much  mag- 
nified; B,  head  of  same  from 
below;  C,  head  of  same  from 
side;  D,  male  impregnating 
female;  E,  female  issuing  from 
the  gall ;  F,  adult  much  enlarged. 
The  narrow  lines  close  to  each 
figure  indicate  the  actual  size 
of  the  insect. 


something  decidedly  lacking  in  our  product  when  com- 
pared with  the  famous  fig  of  commerce  from  Smyrna. 
The  very  decided  difference  in  quality  was  attributed 
to  soil  and  climatic  conditions,  and  those  who  were  ready 
to  concede  that  a  little  wasp  could  so  completely  change 
the  character  of  a  fruit,  were  in  the  abject  minority. 
Although  it  is  not  necessary  to  have  the  fig  wasp  for  the 
White  Adriatic,  nevertheless  there  is  a  decided  im- 
provement in  this  and  even  in  other  varieties  of  figs 
where  the  wasp  has  made  its  entry. 

This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  although  the  greater  part 
of  the  flowers  in  the  Adriatic  type  of  figs  are  malformed 
and  therefore  cannot  be  pollinated,  there  are  some 
flowers  in  such  figs  whi^h  do  take  the  pollen,  and  these 
have  perfect  seeds. 

One  point  must  not  be  overlooked — that  the  edible 
fig  grows  on  an  entirely  distinct  tree  from  the  caprifig. 
The  oaprifig  serves  as  a  home  for  the  several  genera- 
tions of  the  wasp,  and  its  figs  are  not  edible.  The  capri- 
fig produces  three  distinct  crops  annually,  the  first  one 
pushing  out  on  the  wood  of  the  previous  year's  growth 
in  March;  the  second  crop  comes  on  the  new  wood  in 
July;  the  third  in  September.  These  several  crops  are 
designated  as  follows:  Profichi,  or  spring  crop;  Mam- 
moni,  or  summer  crop;  Mamme,  or  overwintering  crop. 
The  Mamme  figs  remain  on  the  trees  all  winter,  from 
September  until  into  the  April  of  the  following  year, 
the  wasps  during  this  period  being  in  the  larvae  stage. 
When  the  caprifig  starts  to  grow  in  the  spring  the  wasps 
pass  out  of  the  larvae  into  the  pupae  stage,  and  finally 
when  the  Profichi  figs  are  about  the  size  of  marbles, 
which  usually  occurs  in  April,  the  female  wasp  passes 
from  the  Mamme  figs  and  forces  her  way  through  the 
scale  of  the  orifice  into  the  Profichi  figs  (which  to  the 
naked  eye  is  closed)  and  deposits  an  egg  in  the  ovaries 
of  the  gall  flowers.  The  life  history  of  the  wasp  in  this 
crop  is  the  same  as  in  the  others,  the  only  difference 
being  that  the  metamorphosis  takes  place  more  rapidly. 
When  the  crops  reach  maturity  there  are  both  males 
and  females.  The  males  are  wingless  and  are  readily 
distinguished  by  their  reddish  tinge;  the  females  are  of 
a  lustrous  black  color  and  are  winged.  The  male  wasp 
crawls  out  of  the  gall  first,  intuitively  locates  the  female 
in  the  gall  in  which  she  is  confined,  gnaws  an  opening 
with  its  powerful  mandibles  and  impregnates  her. 
She  then  enlarges  the  opening  made  by  the  male  and 


starts  on  a  tour  of  exploration..  Her  sole  object  in  life 
is  to  perpetuate  her  species  and  to  do  this  she  must 
find  the  flower  of  another  fig  to  deposit  her  eggs.  As  the 
Profichi  crop  bears  the  most  important  part,  in  her 
relation  to  mankind,  for  the  sake  of  argument  we  will 
take  it  for  granted  that  the  female  wasp  is  coming  out 
of  the  Profichi  crop.  As  she  prepares  to  take  her  de- 
parture she  passes  through  the  zone  of  male  or  stami- 
nate  flowers,  surrounding  the  orifice  of  this  fig,  and  her 
body  is  completely  dusted  with  the  pollen  grains.  In 
the  great  fig-growing  districts  this  flight  occurs  in  the 
month  of  June.  It  is  in  this  stage  of  her  existence  that 
the  hand  of  man  steps  in. 

The  Profichi  figs  are  gathered  from  the  trees  and  are 
distributed  in  oval  baskets  made  of  three-quarter-inch 
poultry  netting  or  placed  in  small  strawberry  or  fruit 
baskets  which  have  been  previously  hung  on  wire  in 
the  Smyrna  fig  trees.  At  this  time  the  Smyrna  figs  vary 
in  size  from  a  small  pea  to  a  large  size  marble.  The 
wasp  forces  its  way  between  the  scale  of  the  orifice  of 
the  edible  fig,  going  into  it  for  the  avowed  purpose  of 
laying  its  eggs. 


The  wire  basket  which  is  suspended  in  the  Calimyrna  fig 
trees.  In  an  exceptionally  large  tree  two  of  these  baskets 
should  be  used. 


44 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Reading's  Capri  No.  3.  It  has  a  magnificent  crop  of  Mamme  or  winter  figs.  This  picture  was  taken  in  December. 
This  was  originally  a  Calimyrna  fig  tree  which  was  grafted  over  to  this  variety  of  Caprifig  three  years  ago.  The 
handkerchief  placed  in  one  of  the  limbs  indicates  where  this  grafting  was  done. 


Fortunately  for  the  fig  industry  it  is  frustrated  in  its 
efforts  to  reach  the  ovaries  of  the  female  flowers  with 
its  ovipositor,  due  to  their  long  styles.  In  its  persistent 
and  determined  effort  to  find  a  receptacle  for  them  it 
crawls  around  the  inside  of  the  fig  and  dusts  the  pollen 
on  the  pistillate  organ  of  the  female  flowers.  The  insect 
is  exceedingly  small  and  it  finally  perishes  within  the 
fig,  being  absorbed  by  its  juices,  or  it  crawls  out  and 
•dies.  One  wasp  is  sufficient  to  pollinate  the  numerous 
flowerets  on  the  inside  of  the  fig,  but  it  very  often 
occurs  that  on  breaking  open  a  fig,  three  to  four 
insects  will  be  found  crawling  around.  Within  a 
-couple  of  days  after  the  wasp  has  penetrated  the  fig, 
its  entire  appearance  changes;  it  becomes  plump  and 


firm  and  of  a  deep  green  color,  while  the  figs  on  the 
same  tree  which  the  wasp  has  failed  to  reach  turn  a 
sickly  yellow,  shrivel  up  and  drop  off.  Nature  again 
asserts  herself  in  behalf  of  man,  by  delaying  the  pushing 
out  of  the  Mammoni  crop  of  figs  until  the  season 
for  caprifying  the  edible  figs  is  practically  over. 
The  Mammoni  is  the  lightest  of  all  the  crops,  and  it  is 
very  difficult  to  find  any  figs  of  this  crop  in  the  caprifig 
tree  until  July.  There  are  just  enough  of  the  late  Pro- 
fichi  figs  on  the  tree  at  this  time  to  supply  wasps  for  the 
Mammoni  crop. 

Growers  who  fail  to  secure  a  good  crop  of  figs  'on  their 
Smyrna  trees  have  only  themselves  to  blame  for  not 
studying  their  problem,  for  a  light  crop  is  traceable  to 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


45 


an  indifference  on  the  part  of  the  grower  in  caprifying. 
There  are  several  varieties  of  caprifigs,  some  of  which 
ripen  their  fruit  early,  while  others  are  later.  As  the 
edible  figs  are  not  in  the  receptive  stage  at  the  same 
time,  this  is  a  fortunate  coincidence.  In  order  to  know 
how  many  caprifigs  to  place  in  a  tree  to  secure  the  best 
results,  multiply  the  age  of  the  tree  from  its  fourth  to 
its  ninth  inclusive  by  five,  and  from  ten  years  and  up 
by  ten,  and  you  will  not  go  very  far  wrong  in  placing 
enough  figs  in  your  trees  to  secure  the  very  best  results. 
From  three  to  ten  figs  should  be  placed  in  the  trees 
every  third  day  or  even  oftener  than  this.  The  fre- 
quency with  which  this  is  done  being  determined  by  the 
rapidity  with  which  the  caprifigs  ripen. 

PLANTING  AND  PRUNING 

Although  the  fig  will  stand  all  kinds  of  neglect  after 
it  is  established,  too  great  emphasis  cannot  be  laid  on 
the  close  attention  which  must  be  given  in  transplanting 
the  trees  from  the  nursery  to  the  orchard.  The  roots 
of  a  fig  tree  are  very  susceptible  to  exposure,  hence  they 
should  be  carefully  covered  in  transferring  from  the 
trenches  to  the  field.  It  is  surprising  what  effect  the 
puddling  of  the  roots  will  have  in  preventing  their  dry- 
ing out  even  in  cases  of  severe  winds,  and  I  cannot  em- 
phasize the  importance  of  this  too  strongly.  To  make 
a  puddle,  dig  a  hole  eighteen  inches  deep,  two  feet  in 
diameter,  fill  it  partly  full  of  heavy  soil,  mix  with  water 
until  you  have  a  muck  the  consistency  of  a  heavy  paint. 
Dip  the  roots  into  this,  and  give  no  further  concern 
about  their  drying  out  even  if  exposed  to  the  direct 
rays  of  the  sun  for  a  short  period. 

Before  planting  cut  off  all  bruised  and  lacerated  roots 
and  make  a  fresh  cut  on  all  other  roots,  so  they  have  a 
smooth,  clean  surface.  The  tree  when  planted  should 
not  stand  over  three  inches  deeper  than  it  stood  in  the 
nursery  row.  Never  neglect  to  settle  the  earth  around 
the  trees  with  not  less  than  fifteen  gallons  of  water. 
After  the  water  has  soaked  away  fill  in  with  fine  soil 
without  tramping.  No  greater  mistake  can  be  made 
than  to  wait  for  rain  or  for  water  to  be  turned  into  the 
irrigating  ditches.  After  the  tree  is  planted,  cut  back 
to  twenty-four  inches  from  the  ground,  and  cover  the 
wound  with  rubber  paint  or  grafting  wax. 

The  first  winter  cut  the  branches  of  the  one-year 
trees  back  to  about  twelve  inches,  leaving  not  more  than 
four  to  make  the  head  of  a  tree.  Have  these  distributed 
in  such  a  manner  that  there  will  be  sufficient  room  for 
them  to  expand  without  crowding  as  the  tree  grows 
older.  The  second  season  cut  not  less  than  two-thirds 
of  the  new  growth,  leaving  not  more  than  two  shoots  on 
each  of  the  framework  branches.  Any  branches  on  the 
underside  of  the  limbs  having  a  tendency  to  droop  to  the 
ground  should  be  removed.  The  third  season  shorten 
in  the  new  growth  about  half,  leaving  the  same  multiple 
of  branches  on  each  of  the  previous  years'  shoots  as 
were  left  the  year  before.  In  after  years  the  pruning  is 
limited  to  the  removal  of  branches  which  cross  or  inter- 
fere with  each  other  and  checking  the  growth  of 
branches,  making  an  excessive  growth.  Young  trees 
should  always  be  protected  with  tree  protectors  to  pre- 
vent sunburn. 


None  of  the  edible  types  of  figs,  whether  they  be  of 
the  Adriatic  or  Smyrna  class,  should  be  planted  closer 
than  thirty  feet.  In  Asia  Minor  orchards  which  have 
been  planted  within  the  last  forty  years  are  set  in  the 
square  system  and  none  of  the  trees  are  planted  closer 
than  thirty-five  feet  apart. 

FREEZING  TO  THE  GROUND 

If  the  trees  have  made  a  very  strong  growth  during 
the  summer  months  and  they  should  (due  to  severe  cold 
weather)  become  so  badly  injured  that  they  freeze  down 
to  the  ground,  the  entire  top  should  be  cut  off  to  a  point 


A  one-year-old  orchard  grown  Fig  tree  with  the  frame- 
work branches  properly  distributed  around  the  -body  of 
the  tree  and  cut  back  to  promote  sturdiness  and  develop 
a  head. 


A  two-year-old  tree  with  laterals  cut  back.    Note  that.this 
tree  is  already  assuming  a  shapely  head. 

where  the  body  shows  no  injury,  just  before  the  new 
growth  starts  out  in  the  spring.  A  number  of  suckers 
will  start  from  the  body  and  all  of  them  should  be  per- 
mitted to  grow.  In  June  all  excepting  the  strongest  ones 
should  be  removed  and  these  should  be  tied  to  a  2  in.  x 
2  in.  x  6  ft.  stake,  and  whenever  the  sucker  reaches  the 
height  of  three  feet  cut  the  top  off  to  two  feet  from  the 


46 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  three-year-old  tree  showing  its  current  year's  growth. 

ground.  This  will  cause  it  to  send  out  lateral  branches 
and  the  head  will  be  formed  at  this  point.  Bear  one 
point  in  mind — that  fig  trees  are  always  grown  from 
cuttings  and,  therefore,  when  they  start  again  from  a 
sucker  growth  the  variety  will  be  the  same.  Much  of 
the  difficulty  from  freezing  may  be  prevented  by  cutting 
off  a  third  of  the  tops  of  the  trees  in  November,  and  then 
wrapping  the  tree  with  corn-stalks  or  tule.  This  should 
be  done  first  by  driving  a  stake  not  less  than  six  feet 
long,  a  foot  into  the  ground.  Then  make  a  circular 
trench  three  feet  in  diameter  around  the  tree.  Place 
the  butt  ends  of  the  stalks  in  this  trench  and  fill  in 
with  soil.  This  holds  them  in  place.  Bring  the  ends 
of  the  material  used  to  protect  the  tree  at  the  top  of 
the  stake  and  then  tie  them  together  by  means  of  a 
rope.  This  covering  should  remain  until  about  the 
middle  of  February,  when  it  may  be  removed. 

PLANTING  CAPRIFIG  TREES 

It  requires  one  caprifig  tree,  when  planting  an  orchard 
in  a  commercial  way,  to  twenty-five  Calimyrna  trees. 
These  should  be  planted  in  a  group  by  themselves  in  a 
protected  part  of  the  orchard  and  never  closer  than 
twenty-five  feer  apart.  They  may  also  be  used  to  ad- 
vantage as  border  trees.  In  planting  it  is  a  very  good 
plan  to  mix  the  varieties,  for  by  doing  this,  in  the  event 
of  one  variety  being  short  of  infested  figs  and  another 
one  immediately  adjoining  having  a  good  crop,  the 
supply  of  insects  for  any  succeeding  crops  necessary  to 
perpetuate  the  wasp  will  be  available.  In  explanation 
of  this  I  desire  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that  it 
frequently  happens  that  Roeding's  Capri  No.  2  is  short 
of  the  Mamme  or  overwintering  figs,  and  in  order  that 
Profichi  crop  appearing  on  the  tree  in  the  spring 
should  become  colonized  with  wasps,  it  is  necessary 


to  suspend  figs  from  either  the  Roeding  No.  1  or  3 
for  this  purpose,  in  the  No.  2  variety.  If  either  one  of 
these  varieties  of  figs  happens  to  be  in  close  proximity, 
"  it  is  not  necessary  to  go  to  this  trouble.  The  caprifig 
makes  a  very  desirable  shade  tree,  and  as  there  is  no 
mess  from  the  dropping  of  the  figs,  growers  will  make 
no  mistake  in  planting  them  around  their  homes.  The 
additional  protection  from  the  buildings  is  a  valuable 
asset  in  years  when  low  temperatures  prevail  during  the 
winter  months.  The  Mamme  crop  will  stand  a  tempera- 
ture of  twenty  degrees  Fahrenheit  without  injury,  but 
anything  lower  than  this,  particularly  over  a  protracted 
period,  will  freeze  the  figs  on  the  outside  branches. 

GATHERING 

Whenever  you  see  figs  and  cream  on  the  menu,  does 
it  not  make  your  mouth  water?  There  is  probably  no 
place  in  the  world  where  figs  may  be  harvested  over  a 
longer  period  than  California.  This  is  made  possible 
by  the  diversity  of  climate  and  lack  of  rainfall  from 
May  to  October.  The  first  crop  of  figs  is  gathered 
.in  June.  These  figs  are  not  as  well  adapted  for  dry- 
ing as  they  are  for  shipping  fresh.  The  second  crop 
which  commences  to  mature  in  the  fig  sections  in 
the  latter  part  of  July,  continues  to  ripen  its  figs 
until  quite  late  in  the  season.  In  the  southern  part 
of  the  state  ripe  figs  may  be  picked  as  late  as  December. 
One  of  the  advantages  of  localities  where  temperatures 
are  moderate  is  that  the  figs  ripen  more  slowly  and  for 
this  reason  shiprr.ents  may  be  made  for  a  much  longer 
period.  Figs  for  shipping  purposes  must  be  gathered 
when  they  are  still  firm  and  are  cut  off  the  tree.  They 
are  shipped  in  crates,  either  packed  in  single  or  double 
layers  with  papers  between.  These  should  never  ex- 
ceed ten  pounds  in  weight,  and  years  of  experience 
leads  me  to  believe  that  single  layer  packages  are  by 
far  the  most  satisfactory.  I  have  demonstrated  to  my 
own  satisfaction  that  it  is  entirely  practicable  to  pack 
figs  in  kegs  using  redwood  sawdust  as  a  preservative. 


The  same  tree  cut  back  and  thinned.  This  method  of 
pruning  develops  trees  such  as  you  see  in  the 
picture  in  the  introductory  chapter  on  the  Fig. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


47 


Washing  and  cleaning  the  dried  Calimyrna  Figs  in  a  salt  and  baking  soda  solution. 


The  advantage  of  handling  figs  by  this  method  is  that 
they  may  be  picked  much  riper  than  when  shipped  in 
crates.  They  will  keep  from  four  to  six  weeks  in  prime 
condition  if  placed  in  a  refrigerator,  where  the  tem- 
perature is  maintained  from  32  to  36  degrees  Fahren- 
heit. This  method  of  handling  has  many  advan- 
tages for  restaurant  or  hotel  use,  because  the  figs  may 
be  taken  out  as  required  from  the  package  without  dis- 
turbing any  more  of  the  figs  than  are  actually  needed. 
The  sawdust  has  a  tendency  to  lacerate  the  skin,  so 
before  placing  them  in  the  packing  material,  they  should 
be  wrapped  with  tissue  paper,  the  same  as  is  used  for 
other  classes  of  fruits.  California  will  be  the  Mecca  for 
preserved  figs  some  day.  Texas,  with  its  many  disad- 
vantages for  growing  figs,  has  been  marketing  pre- 
served figs  for  years.  Practically  all  the  preserved  figs 
sold  in  California  come  from  Texas.  It  is  hard  to  under- 
stand why  the  canners  of  this  state  have  not  engaged  in 
this  industry.  I  predict  the  time  is  not  far  distant 
when  Californian  preserved  figs  will  be  as  famous  as 
our  canned  peaches,  apricots,  and  other  fruits.  Figs 
for  preserving  should  be  picked  in  the  same  condition 
of  ripeness  as  those  used  for  shipping. 

GATHERING  AND  DRYING  FIGS 

Go  through  the  entire  category  of  dried  fruits  and 
the  fig  stands  in  the  lead  of  being  the  most  inexpensive 
one  of  all  the  fruits  to  handle.  Figs  that  are  to  be  dried 
are  allowed  to  drop  to  the  ground.  The  trees  are  given 
a  good  shaking  and  all  the  figs  ripe  for  drying  drop  off. 
When  the  fig  is  fully  matured,  it  loses  its  shape  and 


hangs  down  in  a  more  or  less  shrivelled  condition.  The 
figs  are  gathered  from  the  ground  in  buckets  by  either 
women  or  children  and  are  then  dumped  into  the  lug 
boxes  holding  from  forty  to  fifty  pounds.  These  are 
hauled  to  the  drying  ground  and  the  figs  are  spread  out 
on  trays.  There  is  no  better  place  for  drying  figs,  or 
any  other  fruit  for  that  matter,  than  a  section  of  an 
alfalfa  field.  As  the  figs  are  almost  half-dried  when 
they  drop  to  the  ground  they  require  but  very  little 
exposure  to  the  sun  when  placed  on  trays.  At  the  out- 
side they  are  not  exposed  for  more  than  a  couple  of 
days,  when  the  trays  are  stacked  so  as  to  permit  a  cir- 
culation of  air  through  them.  The  drying  proceeds  in 
the  shade  from  this  time  on.  Whenever  the  fig  feels 
leathery  when  squeezed  between  the  fingers,  it  is  dried 
enough.  Avoid  over-drying,  as  this  more  than  any  other 
one  thing,  causes  the  skins  to  be  tough.  The  next 
step  is  to  dip  the  figs  in  a  salt  brine  made  by  dissolving 
four  pounds  of  salt  and  one-half  pound  baking  soda  in 
&  gallon  of  water.  The  solution  should  be  cold.  If  hot 
water  is  used  it  darkens  the  figs.  A  cement  trough 
equipped  with  perforated  iron  buckets,  with  a  lever  to 
raise  these  buckets  up  and  down,  is  used,  and  the  figs  are 
dumped  on  the  trays  after  they  have  been  rinsed.  This  is 
by  far  the  best  and  most  economical  equipment.  The 
washing  of  the  figs  continues  over  a  period  of  ten  to 
fifteen  minutes,  depending  on  the  condition  of  the  fruit. 
The  figs  are  now  placed  on  trays  and  sulphured.  Cali- 
myrna and  Mission  figs  should  be  sulphured  for  three 
hours,  the  White  Adriatic  from  five  to  six  hours. 
After  sulphuring,  the  trays,  loaded  with  figs,  are  again 


48 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Note  the  tree  in  the  foreground.  These  trees  were  beheaded  four  years  previously.  This  picture  was  taken  just 
after  pruning.  Notice  the  sturdiness  and  the  thrifty  growth  of  the  lateral  branches.  The  figs  produced  on  these 
trees  are  all  of  the  largest  size  and  finest  texture. 


placed  in  the  sun  for  a  few  hours  until  the  moisture  on 
the  fruit  has  evaporated,  when  the  trays  are  again 
stacked.  Within  two  days,  if  the  weather  is  warm, 
the  figs  are  dumped  into  sweat  boxes  and  are  hauled  to 
the  nearest  packing  house.  Here  they  again  go  through 
a  series  of  processes  consisting  of  grading,  washing, 
steaming,  for  the  purpose  of  cleansing  them  and  de- 
stroying all  insect  life.  Under  normal  conditions  the 
expense  of  gathering  the  figs,  hauling  them  to  the  dry- 
ing ground  and  putting  them  through  the  several  pro- 
cesses described,  does  not  exceed  fifteen  dollars  per  ton 
for  the  dried  product. 

IRRIGATION 

A  furrow  plowed  on  each  side  of  the  trees  and  about 
three  feet  from  them,  will  carry  all  the  water  and  will 
irrigate  all  the  ground  which  it  is  necessary  to  cover 
during  the  first  two  years  after  planting.  The  trees 
should  not  be  irrigated  more  than  four  times  and  not 
less  than  twice  during  the  growing  season.  Cultivate 
well  after  each  irrigation.  Never  irrigate  after  August 
unless  the  tree  gives  indications  of  drying  up.  Late 
irrigating  promotes  new  growth  to  such  an  extent  that 
the  trees  do  not  harden  up  as  early  in  the  fall  as  they 
should,  and  in  consequence  of  this  they  are  damaged 
by  frost.  When  the  trees  are  five  years  old  two 
irrigations  is  all  they  require  during  the  growing 
season.  The  time  to  do  this  is  in  May  and  then  again 
in  July.  The  latter  irrigation  may  be  dispensed  with 
if  the  trees  are  making  a  thrifty  growth. 


CROP  SURE— NO  FAILURES 

The  certainty  of  the  crop  is  indicated  by  the  policy 
pursued  by  the  packers  of  dried  figs,  who  make  it  a 
practice  to  purchase  the  entire  output  of  an  orchard 
extending  over  a  period  of  years  at  a  fixed  annual  sum. 
The  prices  paid  depend  largely  on  the  size  of  the  trees. 
The  contractors  assume  all  the  expense  of  harvesting, 
the  grower  merely  prunes  and  cultivates  his  orchard 
under  this  arrangement.  The  importations  of  Smyrna 
figs  are  constantly  increasing,  the  annual  amount 
averaging  not  less  than  13,000  tons.  This  fact  in 
itself,  with  the  favorable  conditions  existing  in  many 
sections  of  the  Pacific  Coast  states  is  sufficient  indi- 
cation of  the  possibilities  of  this  great  industry. 

VARIETIES  OF  FIGS  OF  COMMERCIAL  VALUE 

Calimyrna,  Mission,  San  Pedro  White,  White  Adri- 
atic, White  Endrich  (Kadcta.) 

VARIETIES  WORTHY  OF  TRIAL 

Agen,  Bardajic,  Black  Ischia,  Bourjasotte  Panache. 
Brown  Turkey,  Brunswick,  Col  di  Signora  Nigra, 
Dauphine,  Doree,  Drap  d'Or,  Kassaba,  Lardaro, 
Pastiliere,  Ronde  Noire,  San  Pedro  Black,  Verdal 
Longue,  White  Celeste,  White  Genoa,  White  Ischia, 
White  Marseilles. 

VARIETIES  OF  CAPRIFIGS 

Magnissalis.  Milco,  Roeding  No.  1,  Roeding  No.  2, 
Roeding  No.  3. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


49 


An  old  Fig  tree  cut  back  for  the  purpose  of  developing  a  new 
head.  The  branches  in  the  center  are  left  to  shade  the 
cut-back  section.  They  are  eventually  cut  off  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  others  were.  The  new  growth  appearing 
on  the  framework  branches  must  be  shortened  in  very 
severely  for  several  years.  The  stumps  should  be  sawed 
off  as  far  as  possible  to  a  common  point  from  which  several 
new  branches  have  started.  Be  sure  to  paint  the  stumps 
over  with  coal  tar.  Cutting  these  stumps  close  to 
where  the  new  growth  starts  causes  the  cambium  layer 
to  cover  the  wounds  quickly  and  prevents  the  decaying  of 
the  sap  wood.  The  trunk  of  the  tree  should  be  given  a 
coating  of  thick  whitewash  not  later  than  May.  It  is  a 
good  plan  in  addition  to  this  to  wrap  the  body  and  main 
branches  of  the  tree  with  burlap  to  prevent  sunburn. 


A  one-year-old  Olive  tree  with  its  entire  seasonal  growth. 


THE  OLIVE 

In  California  the  olive  has  long  since  passed  the 
experimental  stage  and  is  now  being  produced  in 
quantities  for  pickling  and  oil  purposes.  The  impor- 
tant position  that  it  is  destined  to  occupy  as  one  of  our 
leading  horticultural  industries  can  no  longer  be 
questioned. 

California  possesses  the  same  soil  and  climatic  con- 
ditions in  which  the  olive  thrives  in  the  countries  of 
Europe,  Asia  and  Africa,  and  there  is  absolutely  no 
obstacle  to  prevent  our  supplying  the  demands  of  not 
only  this  country,  but  becoming  exporters  of  the  num- 
erous products  for  which  the  olive  is  noted. 

The  two  countries  which  stand  out  most  prominently 
as  producers  of  olives  are  Italy,  famous  for  its  oil,  and 
Spain,  for  its  green  pickled  olives.  In  Italy  there  are 
2,688,738  acres  planted  to  olives,  and  according  to 
reliable  statistics  Spain  has  3,546,515  acres.  There  are 
many  insect  pests  threatening  the  olive  in  those  two 
countries,  which  frequently  curtail  the  output.  There 
is  very  little  likelihood  of  any  of  these  pests  or  diseases 
gaining  entrance  into  California,  because  we  have  all 
the  leading  and  best  European  varieties  growing  here 
already.  We  have  hundreds  of  thousands  of  acres, 
extending  almost  from  the  northerly  to  the  extreme 
southern  part  of  the  state,  in  which  olives  can  be  suc- 
cessfully grown. 

PICKLING  THE  OLIVE 

The  ripe  pickled  olive  is  pre-eminently  a  California 
product.  People  who  never  eat  the  green  olive,  and 
those  who  do,  have  to  acquire  the  taste  for  them, 
take  to  ripe  olives  as  a  duck  does  to  water.  Those  who 
are  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  olive  pickles  en- 
counter only  one  difficulty,  and  that  is  to  secure  suffi- 
cient of  the  ripe  .olives  to  satisfy  the  demand  of  the 
consumer. 

Every  home  should  have  an  olive  tree  where  there  is 
sufficient  ground,  for  one  tree  will  supply  all  the  olives 
which  the  average  household  will  use  for  several  months. 

PLANTING 

Today  the  transplanting  of  olive  trees  is  compara- 
tively an  easy  matter  to  what  it  was  twenty-five  years 
ago,  when  the  industry  was 
just  beginning  to  attract  the 
attention  of  horticulturists. 
At  that  time  the  trees  inva- 
riably died  unless  they  were 
potted  plants.  After  years  of 
experimental  work  the  cause 
of  the  trees  failing  to  grow 
was  found  to  be  due  to  not 
topping  the  trees  and  short- 
ening in  the  lateral  branches 
when  digging.  This  method 
of  trimming  overcomes  much 
of  the  evaporation  and  loss 
of  vitality  through  the  foliage 
and  much  of  the  trouble 
formerly  experienced  has  been 
overcome.  In  nearly  all  cases 
where  trees  fail  to  grow  the 


Same  tree  with  branches 
shortened  in,  permitting 
shoots  with  an  upward 

bUt 


50 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  three-year-old  Ascolano  Olive  tree,  making  a  fine,  uniform  and  healthy  growth. 


trouble  can  be  traced  back  to  not  again  cutting  the 
trees  back  after  they  are  set  or  to  careless  handling  on 
the  part  of  the  planter  after  the  trees  are  received. 

In  order  to  insure  the  best  results  for  the  orchardists, 
the  trees  should  be  top-pruned  and  all  the  lateral 
branches  should  be  shortened  before  shipment  from  the 
nursery.  This  method  of  trimming  overcomes  the 
evaporation  and  loss  of  vitality  through  the  foliage, 
and  is  a  very  important  point. 

Olive  trees  should  not  be  transplanted  until  the  mid- 
dle of  February,  for  it  is  only  in  a  few  places  that  the 
growing  season  starts  in  earlier.  When  received  at 
destination  take  them  out  of  the  receptacle  in  which 
they  are  packed  and  heel  them  in  a  sandy,  warm  soil 
and  then  turn  a  hose  loose  in  the  trench  so  that  the  soil 
will  fill  in  all  interstices  and  exclude  the  air.  After  the 
soil  is  settled  fill  in  with  loose  soil  and  tramp  it  down. 
The  trench  should  not  be  less  than  fourteen  inches  deep. 
The  trees  should  stand  upright  rather  than  at  an  angle. 
Treated  in  this  manner  they  will  remain  in  perfect  con- 
dition until  the  ground  is  in  shape  for  planting.  As 
soon  as  they  are  taken  out  of  the  trenches  and  prior  to 


planting,  all  bruised  and  lacerated  roots  should  be  cut 
off  and  a  new,  clean  cut  made  on  all  the  other  roots. 
Before  taking  out  to  the  field,  puddle  the  roots  in  the 
same  manner  as  is  recommended  for  the  fig.  This 
particular  phase  of  the  operation  must  not  be  over- 
looked. Dig  the  holes  to  receive  the  trees  as  recom- 
mended for  the  general  run  of  deciduous  fruit  trees  and 
follow  the  other  directions  faithfully.  Do  not  fail  to 
cut  the  trees  back  to  two  feet  after  being  planted  and 
shorten  all  laterals  to  two  inches.  If  there  should  be  no 
laterals,  cut  the  trees  back  anyway,  for  the  olive  will 
always  force  out  its  blind  buds. 

Olives  may  be  taken  up  in  the  late  fall  or  in  mid- 
winter, provided  they  are  dug  with  a  ball  of  earth. 
The  trees  start  more  quickly  than  those  taken  up  with 
naked  roots  and  almost  a  perfect  stand  of  trees  is  as- 
sured. There  is  considerable  additional  expense  en- 
tailed in  digging  and  packing  and  in  railroad  charges, 
for  a  balled  olive  tree  will  weigh  at  least  thirty  pounds. 

The  theory  that  olives  can  be  grown  successfully  on 
poor,  rocky  soils  has  been  exploded  long  ago.  It  is  a 
fact  that  olive  trees  are  found  growing  in  such  soils  in 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


51 


The  same  tree  with  many  of  its  branches  thinned  out,  and  the  laterals  and  top  growth  properly  pruned  to  develop 

an  ideal  tree. 


many  countries  of  Europe,  as  I  know  from  personal 
observation,  but  this  does  not  indicate  that  olive  cul- 
ture is  a  success  in  such  soils.  The  trees  usually  are 
scrawny,  entirely  lacking  in  the  essentials  which  go  to 
make  a  perfect  tree,  and  would  cause  the  orchardist 
accustomed  to  the  fine,  luxuriant  trees  grown  in  Cali- 
fornia, to  have  heart  failure  if  he  had  such  prospects 
before  him. 

Do  not  make  the  mistake  of  planting  the  trees  too 
closely  together.  The  olive  is  a  gross  feeder  and  sends 
out  a  mass  of  small  surface  roots.  Never  plant  closer 
than  thirty  feet  in  a  good,  loamy  soil,  and  forty  feet 
apart  on  rich  deep  soils.  A  deciduous  tree  may  be 
planted  between,  at  this  latter  distance  if  it  is  desired, 
with  a  view  of  taking  it  out  as  soon  as  the  olives  attain 
any  size. 

PRUNING 

When  the  tree  is  planted  it  should  stand  at  least  four 
inches  deeper  than  in  the  nursery  rows.  Allow  the  tree 
to  grow  without  much  interference  the  first  year,  for  the 
more  vigorous  the  new  growth  and  the  more  of  it,  the 
stronger  will  be  the  root  development.  The  first  winter 


after  planting  trim  all  the  growth  off  except  four  or 
five  branches  close  to  the  head,  and  have  these  properly 
distributed,  as  they  will  ultimately  form  the  main 
framework  branches.  Cut  off  two-thirds  of  their 
growth.  The  second  winter  trim  the  tree  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  leave  from  one  to  two  laterals  on  the  origi- 
nal framework  branches,  bearing  in  mind  that  these 
branches  should  have  an  upright  tendency  and  cut 
them  in  turn  back  at  least  one-half.  In  subsequent 
years  this  same  method  of  thinning  out  and  shortening 
in  should  be  followed,  and  this  cutting  should  be  quite 
severe  for  at  least  four  years.  The  workman  should  not 
always  prune  to  an  outside  lateral,  but  should  exercise 
some  judgment  to  balance  the  tree  by  causing  some 
branches  to  slope  inwardly  and  force  others  to  have  an 
outward  tendency  as  illustrated  in  the  cuts.  Pruning 
promotes  sturdiness  in  the  tree,  a  healthy,  uniform 
growth  and  a  broad-bearing  surface.  This  last  fact  is 
shown  by  the  growth  of  many  lateral  fruit-bearing 
branches.  A  tree  with  its  growth  unchecked  would 
consist  of  several  upright  shoots  with  the  fruit-bearing 
branchlets  in  the  top. 


52 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


This  is  a  section  of  a  sixty-acre  Mission  Olive  orchard,  belonging  to  the  author,  located  near  Exeter,  Tulare  County. 
These  seven-year-old  trees  amply  illustrate  the  results  obtained  by  a  systematic  method  of  pruning. 


In  case  of  a  heavy  crop  these  branches,  being  without 
any  natural  braces,  which  would  have  developed  by 
pruning,  will  bend  over  and  in  many  instances  break 
off.  After  a  number  of  years  the  shearing  off  of  the 
small  laterals  will  cause  many  so-called  "crow's-nests"  to 
form  in  the  trees,  and  the  new  growth  will  be  rather  weak. 
It  will  be  at  least  fifteen  years  before  the  trees  will 
reach  this  stage,  but  when  they  do  there  should  be  no 
hesitancy  in  cutting  them  back  severely  and  thinning 
vigorously,  to  promote  a  strong,  new  growth.  Even 
before  this  age  the  trees  will  have  a  large  amount  of 
inside  growth,  which,  when  it  is  no  longer  productive, 
should  be  cut  out  entirely.  This  does  not  mean  neces- 
sarily that  the  trees  should  be  thinned  out  like  a  peach, 
for  this  would  be  a  mistake,  but  that  wood  which  indi- 
cates by  its  appearance  that  it  has  lost  its  vitality  should 
be  removed,  for  it  will  soon  be  replaced  by  new  wood. 

STOCKS 

It  has  been  the  prevailing  practice  since  olives  were 
planted  in  California  to  raise  them  from  cuttings.  The 
trees  planted  by  the  Mission  Fathers  in  San  Diego  in 
the  year  1769  were  undoubtedly  started  from  cuttings 
or  possibly  from  truncheons.  What  is  a  truncheon?  It 
will  be  observed  that  old  olive  trees  have  large  pro- 
tuberances on  the  body  of  the  tree.  If  these  are  gouged 
out  with  their  woody  fiber  ard  planted  with  the  rough- 


wood  side  down  and  about  eight  inches  below  the  sur- 
face of  the  soil,  every  one  of  them  will  grow.  Numerous 
sprouts  will  start  from  this  knob,  all  of  which  after 
they  are  three  feet  high  should  be  removed,  leaving 
one.  Cut  this  back  to  two  feet  from  the  ground  for 
the  purpose  of  starting  a  head  at  this  point.  The  same 
method  was  unquestionably  followed  in  growing  the 
trees  in  later  years.  They  were  not,  I  am  quite  sure, 
started  from  seeds,  although  some  writers  claiming  a 
great  variation  in  the  Mission  olive  say  it  is  due  to  this 
fact.  The  same  statement  might  have  been  made  in 
behalf  of  the  Mission  fig.  As  a  matter  of  fact  the  seeds 
of  all  figs  were  hollow  until  the  fig  wasp  was  introduced 
and  established  in  the  author's  caprifig  trees  in  1899. 
In  my  many  years  close  study  of  the  olive,  I  have 
never  seen  but  one  variety  of  Mission  olive.  The 
practice  in  California  for  over  twenty-five  3rears  has 
been  to  grow  olive  trees  from  soft  tips,  which  are 
rooted  in  a  greenhouse  in  sand.  Practically  all  the  com- 
mercial orchards  in  California  have  been  started  from 
trees  grown  in  this  manner.  Quite  a  number  of  varie- 
ties are  difficult  to  root  by  this  method.  In  fact,  with 
the  Sevillano  and  Ascolano  it  is  next  to  impossible  to 
secure  a  stand  with  cuttings.  Whether  the  trees  grown 
from  the  seed  of  the  Redding  Picholine  and  Chamlaly 
and  budded,  are  any  better  is  an  open  question.  The 
claim  is  made  that  the  trees  have  a  better  root  system 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


53 


and  will  withstand  heavy  winds  better  than  those 
raised  from  cuttings.  I  have  my  grave  doubts  about 
this,  but  as  the  rooting  of  many  varieties  under  the  old 
method  is  fraught  with  so  many  difficulties  the  plan  of 
raising  seedlings  and  either  budding  or  grafting  them 
will  appeal  to  every  nurseryman. 

GATHERING 

For  making  the  green  pickles,  olives  should  be  gath- 
ered just  as  a  change  from  a  light  gre&n  to  a  yellow 
shade  is  seen.    The  development  of  the  olive  industry 
in  California  has  been  largely  due  to  the  remarkable 
success  which  has  been  made  in  the  processing  of  the 
ripe  olive.    As  there  is  quite  an  active  demand  and  more 
than  likely  there  always  will  be  in  many  parts  of  the 
world  for  green  pickled  olives,  it  will  make  it  impera- 
tive for  those  engaged  in  the  business  in  a  commercial 
way  for  market  to  process  them  in  any  manner  in  which 
they  may  be  demanded  by  the  trade.    One  of  the  ad- 
vantages of  the  green  pickled  olive  from  a  grower's 
standpoint  is  that  in  years  of  very  heavy  crops,  when 
the  trees  are  overburdened  with  fruit,  the  olives  are  very 
slow  in  ripening,  and  this  may  be  delayed  so  late  in  the 
fall  that  the  olives  become  injured  by  frost  and  this  un- 
fits them  for  pickling  purposes.    If  the  trees  are  thinned 
by  picking  a  good  part  of  the  olives  early,  those  re- 
maining will  not  only  size  up  but  will  reach  maturity 
within  a  few  weeks,  where  it  will  extend  over  a  period  of 
several  months  if  all  the  olives  were  allowed  to  remain 
on  the  tree.    In  picking  olives  care  should  be  taken  not 
to  press  them  together  when  gathering.     The  bucket 
into  which  the  olives  are  picked  should  be  lined  with 
burlap.    The  lug  boxes  which  are  used  to  carry  them 
from  the  field  should  never  be  more  than  two-thirds 
full.    If  the  olives  are  to  be  kept  for  any  length  of  time 
before  they  are  processed  or  are  to  be  shipped  by  rail, 
they  should  go  forward  in  barrels  in  a  brine  made  by 
dissolving  three  ounces  of  salt  to  a  gallon  of  water. 
When  handled  in  this  manner  they  will  keep  for  several 
weeks  in  the  very  best  of  condition.  'Whether  green  or 
ripe,  this  is  the  only  practical  way  of  shipping  olives. 
An  olive  is  ripe  whenever  it  reaches  the  point  where 
its  surface  is  more  or  less  diffused  with  red.     It  is 
not  an  invariable   rule   to   follow,   because   in   years 
of  very  heavy   crops,    when   the   olives   are   allowed 
to  hang  on  the  trees,  the  fruit  may  never  rea."h  a 
point  beyond   showing   a   light    straw   color  on   one 
side.     Such  olives  are  ripe.     The  expense  of  gather- 
ing olives  for   pickling  purposes  varies  from   eight- 
een to  twenty-five  dollars  per  ton,  depending  on  the 
crop,  labor  conditions  and  so  forth.    For  making  oil  it 
is  not  necessary  to  exercise  the  same  care.    The  olives 
may  be  pulled  off  the  trees  and  allowed  to  drop  to  a 
canvas  spread  under  them.    In  shipping,  it  is  practicable 
to  forward  them  in  sacks.    Should  they  be  on  the  road 
for  any  length  of  time,  it  is  important  to  have  the  car 
well  ventilated,  otherwise  they  may  mold.    This  may 
be  overcome  and  the  weight  may  be  very  materially 
reduced   by  spreading  them  out   on   a  wooden  floor 
under   cover   and   turning   them   occasionally   before 
shipping.      They  should  never  be  spread  more  than  six 
inches  deep. 


METHODS  OF  PICKLING 

How  to  make  our  green  olives  when  turned  out  as  a 
finished  product  compare  favorably  with  the  imported 
goods  was  the  desideratum  we  all  aspired  to  thirteen 
years  ago.  Information  from  Spain  and  Algeria,  the 
two  points  from  which  practically  all  of  our  green 
olives  came,  was  so  misleading  that  men  who  were 
experienced  in  this  class  of  work  knew  that  if  the  in- 
structions given  were  followed  the  olives  would  be 
ruined. 

In  order  to  make  green  olives  similar  in  appearance 
and  flavor  to  the  imported  olive,  the  process  extends 
over  a  period  of  several  months.  Briefly,  the  process  is 
as  follows :  First  the  olives  are  graded  and  sorted,  being 
reasonably  careful  to  get  the  olives  that  are  to  be 
treated  of  a  uniform  size.  The  olives  should  be  covered 
with  a  solution  made  by  dissolving  three  ounces  of  lye 
in  a  gallon  of  water.  It  takes  from  eighteen  to  twenty- 
four  hours  to  cut  the  olives  the  desired  depth — about 
one-third  through.  The  rapidity  of  the  cut  depends 
on  the  condition  of  the  fruit.  Stir  the  olives  occasionally 
while  processing,  to  get  them  to  cut  evenly  and  to 
retain  a  uniform  color. 

The  best  implement  for  stirring  is  a  shovel  made  the 
same  shape  as  an  ordinary  shovel,  except  that  the  blade 
and  handle  are  all  of  wood.  After  the  olives  are  cut  to 
the  desired  depth  wash  them  in  fresh  water  each  day 
for  about  five  days,  or  until  all  lye  has  disappeared. 
Then  cover  the  olives  with  a  brine  made  by  dissolving 
four  ounces  of  salt  to  the  gallon  of  water  for  a  period 
of,  ten  days,  gradually  increasing  its  strength.  The 
olives  will  not  shrink  after  they  have  taken  a  little 
salt.  Fill  the  barrels  full  of  olives,  head  up  in  a  thirty- 
degree  or  ten-ounce  brine  and  roll  the  barrels,  bung  up, 
into  an  open  shed-  Do  not  drive  the  bung  too  tight. 
Every  few  days  following  this,  examine  the  barrels  care- 
fully and  if  the  olives  are  not  fully  covered  with  brine, 
replenish  with  a  thirty-degree  brine  solution.  After 
the  first  month,  the  barrels  will  not  have  to  be  watched 
so  carefully,  but  they  should  be  examined  at  least 
twice  a  month  and  the  brine  solution  should  be  re- 
plenished if  necessary.  As  soon  as  fermentation  is 
practically  over,  the  barrels  should  be  bunged  up  tight. 
They  require  no  further  attention  after  this  except 
to  examine  them  occasionally  to  see  that  the  brine  has 
not  leaked  out. 

HOW  TO  MAKE  OLIVE  OIL 

When  the  olives  are  received  at  the  packing  house 
they  are  run  through  a  fanning  mill  or  an  aspirator  to 
remove  all  dirt  or  leaves.  The  olives  are  next  crushed 
between  heavy  corrugated  iron  rollers,  operated  by 
power  machinery.  In  crushing,  the  pits  as  well  as  the 
pulp  of  the  olives  are  reduced.  It  has  been  found  im- 
practicable to  do  otherwise,  and  the  statement  that  has 
been  made  that  an  inferior  article  is  produced  when  the 
pits  are  crushed  is  a  fallacy,  just  as  much  so  as  that  the 
virgin  oil  comes  from  the  first  pressing.  This  is  good 
trade  talk,  but  is  never  carried  out  in  actual  practice. 
The  first  pressing  is  usually  light  and  the  resultant 
produce  is  practically  all  water,  very  "little  oil. 


54 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Upper  Picture — The  model  olive  plant  of  the  Los  Angeles  Olive  Growers  Association,  showing  the  vats  used  for 

pickling  ripe  olives. 
Lower  Picture — Women  sorting  olives,  picking  out  all  defective  fruit  preparatory  to  processing. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


55 


Before  making  the  second  pressing  the  pomace  is 
again  crushed  and  is  then  placed  in  a  large  press  which 
exerts  a  pressure  of  about  two  hundred  pounds  to  the 
square  inch.  This  is  followed  by  another  crushing  and 
pressing,  the  pomace  having  been  previously  heated  so 
as  to  cause  it  to  more  readily  release  the  oil.  Previous 
to  placing  the  pomace  in  the  press  again,  however,  it  is 
worked  up  by  the  rollers.  The  oil  and  water  from  the 
presses  is  run  into  settling  tanks.  Here  the  oil  remains 
for  forty-eight  hours,  when  it  is  skimmed  off  into  storage 
tanks,  remaining  in  same  until  ready  for  racking.  These 
tanks  are  usually  built  of  galvanized  iron,  although  some 
of  the  large  olive  oil  concerns  use  glass  lined  tanks  for 
storage  purposes.  After  the  oil  stands  in  the  tanks  for 
six  months  it  is  ready  for  bottling.  The  oil  goes  through 
a  sort  of  fermentation  during  this  time,  and  all  impuri- 
ties settle  to  the  bottom.  Before  marketing  the  oil  is 
filtered  through  several  thicknesses  of  filtering  paper 
to  still  further  clarify  it.  California  oil  makers  take 
great  pride  in  the  purity  of  their  goods,  and  the  oil  can 
be  relied  upon  as  strictly  pure — just  as  represented. 

RIPE  OLIVES  FOR  HOME  CONSUMPTION 

Place  olives  in  any  wooden  receptacle  or  earthen  jar. 
Cover  them  with  water,  being  careful  to  use  water 
which  has  been  cooled  by  the  night  air.  After  one  day's 
soaking  in  this  water  draw  it  off  and  cover  the  olives 
with  water  in  which  two  and  one-half  ounces  of  lye  to 
the  gallon  of  water  have  been  dissolved.  After  pouring 
this  over  the  olives  stir  them  carefully  for  fifteen  min- 
utes, and  after  that  every  half  hour.  If  after  fourteen 
hours  the  lye  solution  becomes  neutralized,  slowly  add 
lye  at  the  rate  of  one-half  ounce  to  each  gallon  of  water. 
Allow  the  olives  to  remain  in  the  solution  until  pene- 
trated half  way  through.  Draw  the  lye  solution  off  and 
wash  olives  thoroughly  until  the  water  is  clear.  Change 
water  twice  daily  for  four  days.  Treat  olives  again  as 
before  until  penetrated  almost  to  the  pit.  Rinse  as  be- 
fore, and  immerse  olives  in  fresh  water,  changing  twice 
daily  until  all  trace  of  lye  is  removed.  Now,  cover 
olives  with  a  brine  made  by  dissolving  four  ounces  of 
salt  to  the  gallon  of  water,  changing  the  same  every 
four  days  for  twelve  days,  being  careful  not  to  increase 
the  strength  of  the  brine.  Draw  off  old  brine  and  re- 
place with  new,  gradually  increasing  its  strength  until 
it  is  up  to  eight  ounces  of  salt  to  the  gallon  of  water, 
when  the  olives  will  be  ready  for  the  table.  It  takes 
fully  six  weeks  to  cure  them  by  this  method.  Use  a  good 
grade  of  half-ground  salt. 

COMMERCIAL  PACK 

Olives  are  soaked  in  a  three-ounce  brine  for  a  week, 
until  fermentation  sets  in,  as  less  time  is  then  required  in 
processing.  This  is  followed  up  by  placing  them  in  a 
vat  and  covering  with  a  solution  containing  two  and 
one-quarter  ounces  of  lye  to  one  gallon  of  water.  While 
in  this  solution  the  olives  should  be  stirred  occasionally 
and  they  should  remain  until  the  lye  has  penetrated  to 
within  one-third  of  the  pit.  This  takes  from  ten  to 
eighteen  hours,  depending  upon  the  condition  of  the 
fruit.  Draw  the  lye  off  and  replace  with  a  four  ounce 
brine  for  forty-eight  hours.  Never  use  fresh  water  at 


this  time  of  the  processing.  Draw  off  brine  and  expose 
to  the  air  for  a  period  of  four  days  until  the  olives  be- 
come darkened  and  the  flesh  takes  on  a  brown  shade 
to  the  pit.  Now  cover  again  with  a  solution  containing 
one  .ounce  of  lye  and  three  ounces  of  salt  for  a  period  of 
twenty-four  hours,  and  stir  as  before.  Draw  off  liquid 
and  expose  for  two  days  until  color  is  set.  Should 
olives  be  bitter,  treat  again  with  the  lye  and  salt  solu- 
tion abo'ut  the  same  period,  exposing  as  before.  Follow 
this  up,  covering  the  olives  with  fresh  water  until  the 
lye  is  out,  changing  the  same  five  or  six  times  the  first 
day  and  daily  after  that  until  all  trace  of  lye  is  removed. 
Then  cover  with  a  six-ounce  brine  for  five  days  or 
longer  without  changing  until  by  tasting  they  give  indi- 
cations of  having  taken  the  salt.  They  are  now  ready 
for  canning.  This  brine  should  not  be  changed  until 
the  olives  are  canned,  when  a  fresh  brine,  containing 
four  ounces  of  salt  to  a  gallon  should  be  used. 

CANNING  RIPE  OLIVES 

After,  the  olives  are  in  cans  they  are  run  through  an 
open  exhaust,  lids  off,  registering  212  degrees  Fahren- 
heit. Gallon  cans  are  given  eight  minutes,  two-pound 
cans  three  minutes.  The  olives  are  then  placed  in  boil- 
ing water  and  are  cooked  as  follows:  gallon  cans  fifteen 
minutes,  two-pound  cans  eight  to  ten  minutes.  If  the 
olives  are  firm  and  can  stand  a  longer  cook,  it  is  advis- 
able to  give  them  all  they  will  stand,  for  if  not  properly 
cooked  the  cans  will  swell.  The  length  of  time  for 
cooking  depends  on  the  fruit,  so  that  no  fixed  rule  can 
be  laid  down  for  their  treatment.  This  must  be  deter- 
mined by  the  man  in  charge. 

IRRIGATING 

It  is  quite  true  that  olives  do  not  require  as  much 
water  as  the  orange;  nevertheless,  it  would  be  the 
greatest  mistake  in  the  .world  to  attempt  to  raise  oh' ves, 
for  either  pickles  or  for  making  oil,  without  irrigation. 
The  first  season  irrigate  the  trees  at  least  four  times, 
and  if  they  give  indications  of  being  dry,  the  leaves  turn- 
ing yellow  and  curling,  do  not  hesitate  to  apply  the 
water  again.  It  is  not  necessary  to  irrigate  the  entire 
space  between  the  trees  but  if  a  back  furrow  is  thrown 
up,  about  three  feet  on  each  side  of  the  row  of  trees  and 
the  water  is  run  in  the  furrow  and  made  to  cover  the 
ground  confined  within  the  furrows  by  checking,  the 
trees  will  receive  all  the  water  they  require.  Thorough 
cultivation  is  essential  after  each  irrigation;  if  growers 
would  only  give  more  attention  to  the  cultivating,  in 
many  instances  irrigating  so  frequently  would  not  be 
necessary.  After  the  trees  are  four  years  old  the  entire 
space  between  the  rows  must  be  irrigated.  Under 
average  conditions  and  with  proper  attention  to  the 
stirring  of  the  soil,  three  irrigations  are  ample  for  a 
grove  in  the  interior  valleys  of  the  state.  There  are  two 
irrigations  which  are  important  after  the  trees  come 
into  bearing.  The  first  one  should  take  place  in  April 
just  before  the  trees  come  into  bloom.  This  occurs  in 
the  latter  part  of  April  or  in  early  May.  If  the  rainfall 
has  been  ample  and  the  soil  is  well  charged  with  mois- 
ture, this  irrigation  may  be  dispensed  with.  The  olive 
commences  to  ripen  in  October.  Therefore  they  should 


56 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


>rindin*  up  the  olives  before  pressing  Note^he  man  standing  close  to  the  powerful  press  used  for 
Lower  Picture— A  bottling  room  in  the  same  plant. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


59 


A  section  of  the  six-year-old  Valencia  Late  Orange  Orchard  belonging  to  the  author,  located  in  Exeter.    The  trees 
are  loaded  with  a  very  heavy  crop  of  fruit.    They  have  been  pruned  regularly  every  year. 


fifteen  to  twenty  feet  apart.  The  tree  likes  a  moist 
soil,  and  in  California  a  lime  grove  should  be  liberally 
irrigated.  The  tendency  to  form  a  dense  bushy  head 
should  be  encouraged. 

The  citron  is  more  tender  than  the  lemon,  there- 
fore it  should  be  planted  where  there  is  very  little 
danger  from  damage  by  frost.  The  trees  are  very 
striking  when  loaded  down  with  their  long,  rough- 
skinned  fruits  in  contrast  with  the  large  crinkled 
leaves  of  the  trees.  The  only  use  for  the  fruit  is  for  its 
candied  rind.  The  method  for  preparing  this  fruit  is 
as  follows:  Place  the  citron  whole  in  strong  brine  for 
one  month;  take  the  fruit  out  and  parboil  it  in  clear 
water  until  it  comes  to  a  boiling  point;  then  cut  in 
halves  lengthwise  and  remove  the  pulp  and  seeds. 
Place  these  halves  in  clear  water  for  about  three  days 
until  the  salt  is  soaked  out;  then  make  a  hot  syrup  of 
sugar  and  pour  over  the  fruit,  completely  covering  it. 
Allow  it  to  stand  in  this  for  a  period  of  twenty-four 
hours.  Draw  off  the  syrup,  boil  it  as  before,  and  again 
pour  over  the  fruit.  It  remains  in  this  syrup  for  a 
period  of  three  weeks.  The  syrup  is  then  again  drawn 
off,  the  fruit  is  dropped  into  it  and  boiled  for  five  min- 
utes. It  should  remain  in  this  syrup  for  a  period  of  two 
days,  when  the  citron  is  taken  out,  sugar  is  sprinkled 
over  it,  and  it  is  allowed  to  dry.  No  one  has  ever 
deemed  it  worth  while  to  engage  in  the  business  of  pro- 


cessing the  citron  commercially,  although  very  fine 
experimental  lots  have  been  produced.  Experts  have 
pronounced  the  local  article  as  being  very  meritorious. 
The  tree  grows  very  much  like  the  lemon  except  that  it 
is  of  dwarf  habit. 

SOIL  AND  SITUATION 

An  ideal  location  for  a  citrus  grove  may  be  defined  as 
a  piece  of  land  having  a  westerly  slope  with  a  range  of 
hills  to  the  east.  The  advantage  of  such  a  location  is 
that  in  the  winter  months,  when  there  is  a  spell  of  cold 
weather,  the  ground  absorbs  the  heat  more  rapidly 
from  the  sun's  rays  (due  to  its  slope),  and  in  the  morn- 
ing, in  the  case  of  a  severe  frost,  the  shadow  from  the 
hills  to  the  eastward  causes  a  thawing  out  of  the  foliage 
and  the  fruit  to  be  very  gradual,  thus  reducing  the  in- 
jury to  a  minimum.  The  serious  injury  to  tender  plant 
growth,  in  case  of  a  heavy  frost,  is  due  to  the  sudden 
changes  in  temperature  when  the  sun's  rays  strike  the 
trees,  causing  a  sudden  thawing  out  and  thus  injuring 
the  sap  cells.  It  is  only  within  the  last  few  years  that 
we  are  beginning  to  appreciate  the  important  part  that 
air  currents  play  in  the  growing  of  the  tender  fruits. 
Where  such  currents  are  known  to  exist  they  have  a 
very  important  bearing  in  the  development  of  a  grove. 
For  a  number  of  years  I  have  observed  the  difference  in 
climate  in  Los  Angeles,  Orange  and  San  Diego  counties, 


60 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


The  method  of  protecting  a  young  citrus  tree  from  being 
damaged  by  frost.  In  the  spring,  as  soon  as  there  is  a 
change  in  the  weather,  the  tule  or  corn  stalk  covering 
should  be  pulled  apart  so  as  to  permit  the  air  to  circulate 
through  the  trees  and  later  be  taken  off  altogether. 


particularly  in  sections  lying  between  the  low  range 
of  hills  and  the  mountains  to  the  east.  That  the  Japan- 
ese current  has  a  very  decided  influence  on  the  climate 
and  that  the  low-lying  hills,  in  a  way,  pocket  the  air, 
there  can  be  no  question.  That  vegetation  is  influenced 
by  these  conditions  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state 
is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  roses  are  in  bloom  practi- 
cally all  winter,  that  the  young  growth  of  lemons  and 
oranges  is  very  much  in  evidence,  and  that  even  tender 
palms  like  Kentias  thrive  outside  with  partial  protec- 
tion, all  of  which  goes  to  prove  the  equableness  of  the 
climate.  It  is  largely  due  to  this  condition  that 
lemon  culture  has  so  many  advantages  over  the 
great  interior  valleys,  for  here  there  is  a  chill  in  the 
atmosphere  causing  deciduous  trees  to  go  into  early 
dormancy,  and  no  young  growth  is  ever  noticed  on 
citrus  trees.  Lemons  are  very  profitable  in  the 
southern  counties  because  they  are  frequently  in  full 
bloom  in  the  dead  of  winter,  thus  producing  an 
abundant  crop  in  the  summer  months  when  lemons 
are  in  the  greatest  demand.  Santa  Barbara,  pos- 
sibly more  than  any  other  county,  exemplifies  this 
tropical  climate,  particularly  so  where  the  foothills 
rise  up  rather  abruptly  from  the  coast  line.  Here 
palms  of  the  very  tenderest  character,  which  could 
only  be  grown  in  greenhouses  with  heat,  in  the 
region  north  of  the  Tehachapi,  thrive  and  luxuriate 
without  any  protection.  Oranges  produce  larger 
crops  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state  than  in  the 
interior  valleys,  but  in  quality  they  are  inferior  to 
the  valley-grown  fruit,  grown  along  the  foothills  in 
either  the  red  or  black  dry  bog  soils.  Oranges  ripen 
from  four  to  six  weeks  later  in  the  southern  counties 


than  they  do  in  the  more  northerly  sections.  The  early 
fruit  invariably  brings  the  highest  prices,  and  as  the 
Washington  Navels  in  the  valley  districts  are  all  har- 
vested before  any  severe  cold  weather  occurs,  it  has 
advantages  worthy  of  consideration.  I  regard  it  as  a 
grave  mistake  to  plant  the  Valencia  Late  in  any  other 
location  than  the  foot-hills,  because  this  orange  is 
never  ready  for  shipment  until  April.  I  have  seen 
entire  crops  ruined  by  cold  weather  during  the  winter 
months.  There  are  very  few  soils  in  California  where 
the  citrus  trees  will  not  thrive.  Even  in  hardpan  they 
do  well  if  the  ground  is  blasted.  Never  plant  in  alkali 
soils. 

SELECTING  THE  TREES 

It  costs  more  to  grow  a  citrus  tree  than  any  other 
variety  of  fruit.  The  bud,  after  it  has  made  a  growth 
of  a  foot,  must  be  staked,  and  to  produce  a  straight 
tree  the  young  shoot  must  be  tied  every  two  inches  with 
raffia.  Suckers  must  be  kept  off.  When  the  tree  has 
reached  a  height  of  three  feet  it  is  headed  back  to 
twenty-six  inches;  this  causes  it  to  send  out  laterals, 
and  it  is  at  this  point  where  the  head  of  the  tree  is 
formed.  Whether  to  plant  balled  or  naked  root  trees 
is  a  matter  that  should  receive  consideration.  Balled 
trees  are  far  safer  than  trees  taken  up  with  naked  or 
open  roots,  for  they  may  be  placed  under  cover,  the 
balls  being  placed  in  shavings,  and  if  dampened  occa- 
sionally they  will  keep  in  good  condition  for  several 
months.  It  is,  of  course,  practical  to  handle  trees  with 
naked  roots  providing  certain  fundamentals  are  ob- 
served. Before  taking  up  such  trees,  it  is  necessary 
to  cut  the  tap  root  at  least  eighteen  inches  below 
the  surface  and  defoliate  the  trees.  The  effect  of 
this  treatment  causes  the  tree  to  become  dormant. 
Within  a  short  time  the  buds  begin  to  swell,  indicat- 
ing that  the  tree  has  recovered  from  the  shock  of 
cutting  the  tap  root  and  defoliating,  when  it  may 
be  dug  up.  Great  care  must,  be  exercised  not  to 
expose  the  roots  to  the  sun.  They  are  packed  in  damp 
moss  for  shipment.  Before  using  the  moss  it  is  first 


four-year-old  Eureka  Lemon  tree  in  the  great  lemon  section 
of  La  Habra,  Orange  County,  California,  taken  in  December 
when  the  tree  had  blossoms  and  fruit  in  all  stages  of  develop- 
ment and  with  mature  fruit  ready  to  gather. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


61 


The  check  method  of  irrigating. 

soaked  in  water  and  the  surplus  of  moisture  is  either 
squeezed  out  of  it  with  the  hands  or  by  passing  it 
through  a  clothes  wringer.  If  the  trees  are  properly 
packed  they  will  carry  several  months  in  the  very  best 
of  condition. 

METHOD  OF  PLANTING 

Set  the  tree  so  that  when  the  soil  settles,  the  union 
of  the  bud  with  the  stock  will  be  at  least  a  couple  of 
inches  above  the  ground.  Be  sure  to  settle  the  soil 
around  the  tree  with  water  whether  planting  naked- 
root  trees  or  balled.  This  should  be  done  as  soon  after 
planting  as  possible,  and  if  the  weather  is  warm  it  is 
best  to  have  the  water  following  the  planting,  so  that 
but  a  few  minutes  will  intervene  between  the  time  of 
planting  and  the  time  the  water  reaches  the  tree. 

When  planting  naked-root  trees  have  the  water  in 
the  holes  first,  then  settle  the  tree  and  fill  in  with  earth 
gradually  and  spread  out  the  lateral  roots  with  the 
hands,  so  that  they  will  be  in  about  the  same  position 
as  they  grew  in  the  nursery.  It  is  often  best  to  use  a 
tank  wagon  for  the  first  irrigation  of  naked-root  trees. 

In  filling  in  the  hole  around  a  balled  tree  never  tramp 
on  top  of  the  ball,  as  it  will  break  it  and  dislodge  the 
fibrous  roots,  and  in  many  instances  cause  the  tree  to 
die.  After  the  hole  in  which  the  balled  tree  is  planted 
is  partially  filled,  cut  the  cord  at  the  top 
of  the  ball  and  turn  down  the  burlap,  so 
that  it  will  be  completely  buried  when  the 
remainder  of  the  hole  is  filled  in.  If  this 
is  not  done  the  cultivator  teeth  are  apt  to 
catch  on  the  burlap  and  will  oftentimes 
pull  the  tree  out  of  the  ground  or  disturb 
it  to  such  an  extent  that  it  will  die  before 
the  trouble  is  detected.  It  is  not  neces- 
sary to  remove  the  burlap  from  the  ball; 
if  properly  turned  down  it  will  soon  rot. 

After  the  trees  are  planted  and  irrigated 
and  before  the  earth  has  become  firm 
around  them,  they  should  be  carefully 
gone  over,  as  more  or  less  of  them  will 
settle  to  one  side  or  the  other,  and  unless 
straightened  up  right  away  will  give  the 
orchard  a  bad  appearance.  It  will  also  be 


found  that  some  of  the  trees  have  settled 
more  than  others;  these  should  be  raised 
before  the  earth  becomes  firm  around 
them. 

Newly  planted  trees  should  be  given  a 
light  irrigation  every  ten  days  or  two 
weeks  until  they  begin  to  make  some 
growth.  After  that  it  is  not  necessary  to 
irrigate  quite  as  often.  They  may  be  left 
from  three  to  four  weeks,  according  to 
the  weather. 

Never  allow  young  trees  to  want  for 
water.  If  they  should  show  signs  of  being 
dry,  give  them  a  light  irrigation  right 
away.  After  the  trees  have  been  planted 
a  year  they  should  not  be  irrigated  quite 
so  often.  If  properly  cultivated,  one 
irrigation  every  month  or  six  weeks  is 
sufficient.  In  fact,  trees  will  do  better  if  only  irrigated 
once  every  six  weeks,  provided  the  ground  is  kept 
thoroughly  cultivated  between  irrigations.  The  planter 
should  bear  in  mind  the  fact  that  thorough  cultiva- 
tion is  just  as  essential  as  irrigation.  Care  should 
be  exercised  to  prevent  the  water  from  standing  any 
length  of  time  around  the  stem  of  the  tree.  In  heavy 
soil  this  is  almost  sure  to  cause  gum  disease.  In  addi- 
tion to  cultivation  for  the  purpose  of  filling  in  the  irri- 
gation furrows,  newly  planted  trees  should  be  carefully 
hoed  after  each  watering,  so  as  to  avoid  the  possibility 
of  the  ground  baking  or  cracking. 

STOCKS  FOR  CITRUS  TREES 

In  order  to  meet  soil  and  climatic  conditions  in  differ- 
ent sections,  citrus  trees  are  budded  on  the  following 
stocks:  Sweet  Orange  (Citrus  Aurantium  Dultis),  Sour 
Orange  (Citrus  Aurantium  Amara)  and  Deciduous 
Orange  (Citrus  Trifoliata).  On  the  first-named  sort 
the  budded  trees  outgrow  those  on  any  other  root,  and 
practically  all  the  old  groves  of  the  state  are  worked  on 
this  stock  and  are  thrifty  and  healthy,  except  when 
situated  on  soils  where  there  is  an  excess  of  moisture 
during  certain  seasons.  Sweet  Orange  seedlings  are 
grown  from  the  seed  of  the  common  sweet  seedling 
orange.  Sour  Orange  seedlings  are  grown  from  the  seed 


The  furrow  method  of  irrigating. 


62 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  model  citrus  tree. 


The  interior  branches  of  the  tree  are  loaded  with  fruit, 
own  story. 


The  exterior  of  the  tree  tells  its 


of  the  sour  orange  so  extensively  grown  in  Florida  as  a 
stock  for  budding  practically  all  types  of  citrus  fruits. 
Although  the  buds  do  not  grow  as  rapidly  or  attain  as 
large  a  size  in  mature  trees,  this  stock  is  much  more 
resistant  to  gum  disease;  hence  it  has  been  in  much  de- 
mand in  recent  years  for  heavy  soils,  where  water  was 
apt  to  stand  for  any  length  of  time,  either  because  of 
summer  irrigation  or  a  heavy  rainfall  in  the  winter 
months. 

The  Citrus  Trifoliate,  is  a  native  of  Japan  and  is  the 
hardiest  orange  known.  It  is  deciduous;  its  fruit  is 
very  bitter  and  has  no  commercial  value,  but  its  hardi- 
ness seems  to  exercise  a  decided  influence  on  the  budded 
tree.  It  is  more  resistant  to  cold  than  any  other  stock. 
It  is  also  much  prized  as  a  hedge  plant,  making  an  im- 
penetrable barrier  to  man  and  beast. 

I  have  been  experimenting  with  this  root  for  orchard 
planting  for  a  number  of  years  now,  and  was  under  the 
impression,  up  to  a  short  time  ago,  that  it  would  adapt 
itself  to  locations  in  which  neither  the  sweet  nor  sour 
root  would  grow  well.  The  experiments  I  have  made 
have  convinced  me  that  this  root  is  not  a  satisfactory 
one  for  commercial  planting.  Its  action  is  rather  pe- 
culiar. In  some  instances  the  citrus  budded  on  this 
root  attain  the  same  size  as  trees  worked  on  either  of 
the  two  roots  referred  to  above.  It  is  no  uncommon 


sight,  however,  to  see  two  or  three  trees,  or  even  more, 
in  a  row  not  over  five  or  six  feet  high,  while  other  trees 
on  this  root  in  the  sa~ne  row  may  be  fifteen  feet.  This 
is  a  positive  indication  of  the  dwarfing  effect  of  this 
root. 

Another  peculiarity  about  the  root  is  that  it  differs 
from  any  other  stocks  used  for  dwarfing  fruit  trees  in 
that  the  stock  has  a  greater  diameter  than  the  bud. 
Trees  budded  on  this  root  are  hardier  than  when  budded 
on  any  other  root. 

The  point  which  may  be  considered  as  favorable  to 
this  root  is  that  it  causes  the  fruit  of  the  budded  tree  to 
ripen  several  weeks  earlier  than  on  the  other  roots. 
In  Exeter,  Tulare  county,  where  I  have  a  very  large 
orange  grove,  I  have  found  that  the  Marsh  Seedless 
Pomelo  fruit,  when  the  tree  is  budded  on  trifoliata  root, 
is  much  finer  grained,  has  more  juice  and  is,  in  every 
sense  of  the  word,  a  very  superior  fruit.  Even  with 
these  points  in  its  favor  I  do  not  recommend  trees  on 
trifoliata  root  for  commercial  orchards. 

DISTANCES  APART 

Taking  it  all  in  all,  the  square  method  will  generally 
give  the  best  results  and  I  recommend  it  in  preference 
to  the  equilateral.  While  the  last  named  method  gives 
a  few  more  trees  to  the  acre  and  apparently  gives  the 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


63 


same  amount  of  space  between  the  trees,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  as  the  trees  develop,  there  is  less  room  for  culti- 
vating and  harvesting  the  crops.  This  is  an  important 
item,  in  caring  for  the  orchard  and  its  production. 
I  would  advise  those  wishing  to  plant  trees  by  the 
equilateral  method,  to  do  so  with  the  idea  of  giving  the 
tree  more  room  rather  than  of  getting  more  trees  to 
the  acre. 

The  Washington  Navel  and  other  varieties  of  similar 
growth  should  not  be  planted  closer  than  twenty-two 
feet  apart.  In  such  localities  where  the  soil  conditions 
are  good  and  there  is  every  indication  that  the  trees 
will  make  a  strong  growth,  plant  twenty-four  feet  apart. 
The  Washington  Navel  is  not  usually  a  rapid  or  vigor- 
ous growing  tree.  When  planted  in  light  alluvial  soil 
it  makes  a  much  larger  tree  than  when  growing  in 
heavier  soils. 

The  Valencia  Late  should  be  planted  from  twenty- 
four  to  thirty  feet  apart,  as  it  is  a  very  vigorous  and 
strong  growing  tree. 

Lemon  and  pomelo  trees,  as  they  are  both  very 
strong  and  rapid  growers,  should  be  planted  at  least 
twenty-four  feet  apart.  It  is  safe  and  probably  advis- 
able in  most  cases  to  plant  them  even  a  greater  dis- 
tance apart  than  this. 

The  slow-growing  varieties,  such  as  Satsumas,  Limes 
and  Kumquats,  can  be  planted  as  close  as  fifteen  feet 
apart,  as  they  never  make  very  large  trees. 

One  idea  should  be  borne  in  mind  always,  and  that 
is,  that  it  is  far  better  to  waste  a  little  ground,  if  one 
might  term  it  so,  in  getting  an  orchard  planted  seem- 
ingly too  far  apart,  than  to  have  it  too  close. 

PRUNING 

If  a  tree  is  headed  at  twenty-eight  inches  from  the 
ground,  all  that  is  necessary  to  do  is  to  cut  the  laterals 
forming  the  head  back  to  about  six  inches.  In  case  the 
tree  in  the  nursery  has  been  permitted  to  make  a 
straight  stem  and  has  not  been  headed  back  as  it 
should  have  been,  then  the  top  should  be  cut  off  to 
within  thirty  inches  of  the  ground  to  cause  the  tree  to 
form  a  head. 

High-headed  trees  are  always  objectionable,  for  they 
not  only  expose  much  of  the  stem,  causing  sunburn,  but 
in  addition  to  this  the  tree  is  retarded  in  acquiring  a 
sturdy,  compact  growth. 

In  pruning,  above  all  things  do  not  be  deceived  into 
the  idea  that  the  trees  must  be  thinned  out  to  admit  air 
and  sun.  The  tendency  of  nearly  all  budded  varieties 
is  to  droop,  so  in  shaping  a  tree  cut  to  a  lateral  which 
has  an  upward  tendency. 

It  seems  too  bad  that  there  are  thousands  of  acres  of 
citrus  orchard  in  California  which  are  not  pruned  be- 
cause the  grower  is  afraid  to  apply  the  shear  to  hold 
rampant  branches  in  check. 

In  order  to  develop  a  well  rounded,  symmetrical  tree 
it  is  very  important  indeed  to  prune  the  tree  regularly 
every  year  until  it  is  six  years  old.  To  establish  a  com- 
pact, symmetrical  orange  tree,  the  straggling  branches 
should  be  shortened  in  rather  severely  the  first  year 
after  being  set  out,  as  this  will  cause  the  tree  to  force 
out  a  number  of  strong,  vigorous  shoots. 


A  one-year-old  orange  tree  showing  one  year's  growth  in 
the  orchard.  If  these  branches  are  allowed  to  grow  un- 
checked, the  tree  will  be  drawn  out  of  shape. 

In  the  second  year  it  frequently  happens  that  one  or 
more  of  these  shoots  will  grow  to  such  an  extent  that 
the  tree  is  pulled  out  of  shape,  and  it  is  only  by  cut- 
ting this  growth  back  severely  that  the  shape  of  the 
tree  will  be  retained. 

The  building  up  of  the  tree  is  secured  by  cutting 
branches  having  a  tendency  to  grow  too  close  to  the 
ground,  to  an  upper  branch,  and  shortening  this  in. 
The  result  of  this  method  of  pruning,  if  followed  care- 
fully, causes  ambitious  shoots  to  send  out  numerous 
fruit-bearing  laterals.  The  tree,  when  it  reaches  its 
fifth  year,  should  apparently  present  a  mass  of  foliage, 
with  branches  well  distributed  but  not  crowded.  It  is 
as  important  to  cut  out  dead  branches  and  branchlets, 
wriich  will  become  very  numerous,  as  it  is  to  prune. 

Suckers,  if  too  numerous  and  having  a  tendency  to 
draw  the  tree  out  of  shape,  should  be  removed  entirely. 
If,  however,  the  suckers  apparently  help  to  fill  out  the 
tree  and  build  it  up,  they  should  be  shortened  in  to  con- 
form with  the  natural  growth  of  the  tree. 

In  its  finality,  a  well  pruned  orange  tree  should  pre- 
sent a  compact  mass  of  foliage  with  none  of  the  frame- 
work branches  exposed  to  view. 

PRUNING  THE  LEMON 

The  tree  is  a  straggling  grower  and  the  branches  must 
be  held  in  check  by  a  systematic  annual  pruning,  for 
if  the  tree  is  permitted  to  grow  at  will  the  fruit  will  be 
at  the  ends  of  the  long,  unrestrained  branches. 

There  are  many  systems  of  pruning,  but  the  funda- 
mental principle  is  to  produce  a  compact  but  not  too 
dense  low-headed  tree  with  a  large  amount  of  bearing 
surface  on  easily  accessible  branches. 

When  the  tree  is  transplanted  from  the  nursery  to 
the  orchard  the  same  directions  as  given  for  the  orange 


64 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


The  same  Orange  tree  correctly  pruned   to    form    a  well 
shaped  head. 

should  be  observed,  but  in  subsequent  years  the  prun- 
ing is  quite  different.  Not  more  than  four  branches  are 
selected  to  form  the  framework  of  the  tree.  These  in 
turn  are  persistently  cut  back  and  encouraged  to  assume 
an  inclination  to  the  horizontal  rather  than  a  vertical 
direction.  Any  branches  showing  a  tendency  to  make  a 
strong  growth  vertically  should  be  cut  down  and  forced 
to  develop  laterally.  This  continuous  pruning  back 
has  a  tendency  to  produce  a  dense  mass  of  branches  and 
foliage,  and  as  the  tree  grows  some  thinning  out  is 
necessary.  The  results  obtained  by  following  out  this 
system  of  pruning  are  a  shapely  broadened-out  tree, 
liberally  supplied  with  numerous  fruiting  laterals. 

As  lemons  are  picked  a  great  many  times  during  the 
year  and  the  gathering  of  the  fruit  is  no  small  item  of 
expense,  the  advantages  of  having  a  tree  with  a  low- 
spreading  head,  eliminating  much  of  the  expense  of 
harvesting,  must  appeal  to  any  grower. 

PRUNING  THE  POMELO 

The  tree  is  a  more  upright  grower  than  the  orange. 
For  this  reason  the  method  of  pruning  is  somewhat 
different,  but  as  a  whole  it  is  necessary  to  shorten  in  the 
•  growth  and  prune  to  a  branch  which  shows  a  tendency 
to  grow  upright  rather  than  down.  The  shaping  of  the 
pomelo  is  much  simpler  than  either  the  orange  or  the 
lemon.  The  tree  naturally  assumes  a  well-rounded 
head,  providing  the  shears  are  applied  promptly  when- 
ever rampant  branches  have  a  tendency  to  draw  the 
tree  out  of  shape. 

The  pruning  of  the  pomelo  after  it  comes  into  bearing 
should  be  attended  to  just  as  soon  as  the  crop  is  har- 
vested. As  the  fruit  sets  in  March  and  is  harvested 
from  January  to  August  of  the  following  year,  the  neces- 
sity of  pruning  as  soon  as  the  crop  is  taken  off  is  quite 
evident.  Taking  it  all  in  all,  the  plan  outlined  for 
pruning  the  standard  varieties  of  oranges  is  applicable 
to  the  pomelo. 


PRUNING  THE  LIME 

I  have  already  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  the 
tree  is  more  tender  than  either  the  orange  or  .the  lemon 
and  for  this  reason  it  should  be  planted  only  in  such 
localities  where  there  is  not  much  danger  of  the  tree 
being  damaged  by  frost.  Commercially,  it  is  only 
practical  to  raise  limes  in  sheltered  foothill  regions  of 
the  state.  The  seedless  varieties  of  limes  average  much 
larger  than  the  Mexican  types,  and  as  they  come  into 
maturity  much  earlier  in  the  season  they  should  be 
planted  in  exclusion  to  the  other  sorts. 

The  tendency  of  the  lime  is  to  form  a  dense,  bushy 
head.  The  tree  is  really  more  of  a  bush  than  a  tree. 
For  this  reason  it  should  be  pruned  much  more  severely 
than  the  orange  and  the  lower  branches  should  be 
allowed  to  rest  on  the  ground.  To  produce  the  best 
results  it  requires  either  a  moist  soil  or  a  liberal  amount 
of  water. 

PRUNING  THE  CITRON 

The  character  of  the  tree  is  very  much  like  the  lemon, 
therefore  the  recommendations  made  for  pruning  the 
lemon  should  be  observed  in  the  handling  of  the  citron. 

CARE  OF  THE  ORCHARD 

The  old  adage  that  "what  is  worth  doing  at  all  is 
worth  doing  well,"  applies  to  citrus-fruit  culture  as  well 
as  to  all  other  lines  of  horticulture  and  agriculture,  and 
in  no  other  line  are  the  rewards  greater. 

While  an  orange  or  lemon  tree  will  stand  as  much  or 
more  abuse  than  any  other  tree,  yet  no  other  tree  will 
respond  more  quickly  and  more  profitably  to  proper 
care  and  cultivation.  The  grower  who  is  careful  not  to 
let  his  orchard  want  for  care  or  for  fertilization,  is  the 
one  who  always  reaps  a  bountiful  harvest. 

It  would  be  a  difficult  matter  to  lay  down  any  hard 
or  fast  rule  covering  the  irrigation  and  cultivation  of  a 
citrus  orchard,  as  the  soil  and  the  climatic  conditions 
have  a  great  deal  to  do  with  the  proper  time  and  manner 
of  these  two  necessary  requisites. 

Generally  speaking,  in  California,  citrus  orchards 
should  receive  from  three  to  four  irrigations  during  the 
summer  months.  These  should  be  given  from  four  to 
six  weeks  apart.  By  irrigation  I  mean  a  thorough 
wetting;  that  is,  the  water  should  be  run  long  enough  to 
wet  up  the  subsoil  as  deep  and  as  far  out  as  the  roots 
penetrate.  In  light,  sandy  soils  the  penetration  is 
rapid,  but  in  the  heavier  soils  it  often  requires  several 
days  to  properly  saturate  the  subsoil  and  the  only  satis- 
factory way  to  irrigate  such  soils  is  by  the  furrow 
method;  that  is,  by  running  several  furrows,  according 
to  the  age  of  the  orchard,  between  the  rows  and  allow- 
ing very  small  streams  of  water  to  run  down  each  fur- 
row. These  streams  should  be  of  such  size  that  it  will 
take  them  from  twenty-four  to  forty-eight  hours  to  run 
across  a  ten-acre  tract,  which  gives  the  water  time  to 
penetrate  the  subsoil.  In  some  of  the  heavier  soils,  if 
the  water  is  allowed  to  run  through  the  furrows  too 
fast,  it  will  coat  over  the  furrow  with  a  fine  silt  a"»d  it  is 
then  almost  impossible  to  get  the  water  to  penetrate 
the  soil.  The  result  of  this  is  that  the  water  goes  to 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


65 


waste  and  the  trees  remain  in  a  dry  condition.  This 
condition  is  only  apt  to  occur  on  the  hillside  lands  where 
the  fall  is  quite  heavy. 

On  the  lighter  sediment  lands  it  is  not  necessary  to 
let  the  water  run  so  long;  in  fact,  some  of  these  lands 
will  become  sufficiently  wet  by  allowing  the  water  to 
run  only  a  few  hours.  Only  on  extremely  sandy  lands 
is  it  advisable  to  flood  citrus  orchards.  Ordinarily  no 
irrigation  is  required  during  the  winter  months,  although 
in  some  seasons  it  is  necessary  to  irrigate  up  to 
December. 

The  length  of  time  required  for  the  land  to  dry 
sufficiently  for  cultivation  after  an  irrigation  depends 
largely  on  the  nature  of  the  soil  and  weather  conditions. 
A  light,  sandy  soil  will  be  dry  enough  to  cultivate  within 
thirty-six  hours  after  the  water  is  taken  off,  but  the 
heavier  soils  require  several  days  of  sunshine  before 
they  can  be  properly  cultivated.  The  soil  should  be 
dry  enough  so  that  it  pulverizes  or  falls  apart  as  it  is 
turned  up  by  the  cultivator.  If  it  is  inclined  to  stick 
together  and  turn  up  in  solid  masses  it  should  be  left  to 
dry  another  day  or  two.  In  some  of  the  heavier  soils 
where  the  drying  process  is  very  slow,  it  is  oftentimes 
best  to  fill  in  the  furrows  with  a  harrow  as  soon  as  the 
surface  shows  signs  of  baking  or  crusting;  then  follow 
with  cultivator  a  day  or  two  later.  This  prevents  the 
surface  from  getting  too  dry  while  that  below  is  getting 
sufficiently  so  to  cultivate  properly,  thus  obviating  the 
soil  breaking  up  in  large  clods.  Outside  of  the  benefit 
of  turning  over  and  aerating  the  soil,  the  main  benefit 
of  cultivation  is  the  forming  of  a  mulch  of  finely  pul- 
verized soil,  which  keeps  the  subsoil  from  drying  out. 
Unless  the  cultivation  is  done  so  as  to  properly  pulverize 
the  top  soil  a  large  part  of  the  benefit  of  cultivation  is 


A  three-year-old  Orange  tree  rather  one  sided.  This  irregular 
development  must  be  corrected. 


The  same  Orange  tree  pruned.  The  branch  extending  so  far 
beyond  the  tree  was  cut  back,  while  those  branches  having 
an  upward  tendency  were  shortened  in.  This  method  of 
pruning  will  cause  a  tree  to  round  out  uniformly. 

lost,  as  loose,  cloddy  soil  will  dry  out  almost  as  fast  as 
though  uncultivated.  The  deeper  and  finer  the  top 
soil  is  stirred  the  less  water  the  tree  will  require.  I 
strongly  recommend  the  thorough  cultivation  of  citrus 
trees  to  a  depth  of  from  four  to  six  inches  where  it  is 
possible,  and  not  less  than  four  times  between  each  irri- 
gation. It  is  at  times  impossible  to  cultivate  more  than 
two  or  four  inches  deep  the  first  time  after  an  irrigation 
without  turning  up  mud,  but  by  setting  the  cultivator 
a  little  deeper  each  time  a  greater  depth  can  be  attained. 
It  is  not  best  to  do  all  the  cultivating  at  once,  as  it 
should  be  distributed  over  the  interval  between  the 
irrigations,  for  in  this  way  it  helps  to  conserve  the  mois- 
ture in  the  subsoil,  thus  preventing  the  tree  from 
suffering. 

FERTILIZERS  AND  FERTILIZATION 

It  is  best  to  begin  the  study  of  soil  fertility  early,  as 
it  is  far  better  to  feed  the  soil  before  it  is  exhausted. 
How  best  this  can  be  done  is  a  question  that  has  been 
puzzling  our  best  orchardists  for  a  number  of  years,  and 
it  will,  no  doubt,  continue  to  do  so  for  years  to  come,  as 
there  are  so  many  different  soil  conditions  to  contend 
with  that  it  is  impossible  to  lay  down  any  rule  that  will 
apply  in  all  cases. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  nitrogen,  phosphoric  acid 
and  potash  are  the  three  chemicals  required  in  the  soil 
to  produce  and  sustain  plant  life,  and  chemists  have 
figured  out  just  how  much  of  each  of  these  are  required 
for  the  different  plants  and  tree's,  and  how  much  the 
different  crops  will  take  from  the  soil;  yet  when  it  comes 
to  analyzing  the  soil  it  will  be  found  that  most  of  the 
soil  contains  a  sufficient  amount  of  all  these  ingredients 


66 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  Lemon  tree  just  transplanted 
from  the  nursery  to  the  orchard 
with  its  branches  shortened  in 
as  they  should  be.  The  crown 
is  started  twenty-eight  inches 
from  the  ground. 


to  produce  crops  and 
still  the  tree  may  show 
that  something  is  lack- 
ing. This  is  accounted 
for  by  the  fact  that 
any  analysis  of  the  soil 
will  show  what  it  con- 
tains but  does  not  tell 
whether  the  plant  food 
is  available,  and  unless 
it  is  in  such  form  that 
the  roots  can  feed  upon 
it,  it  is  useless  and 
other  plant  food  will 
have  to  be  furnished. 
For  this  reason  the 
question  of  fertilization 
can  only  be  determined 
by  the  growth  of  the 
trees; at  the  same  time, 
it  is  not  advisable  to 
let  the  orchard  go 
without  any  fertiliza- 
tion until  it  begins  to 
show  a  starved  condi- 
tion. By  applying 
about  the  same  amount 
of  plant  food  that  the 
tree  takes  from  the 

ground  each  year,  one  can  prevent  the  soil  from  be- 
coming exhausted.  Then  if  the  tree  shows  by  its 
growth  a  lack  of  certain  ingredients,  it  can  be  supplied 
accordingly.  It  has  been  my  observation  that  barn- 
yard manure  applied  in  liberal  quantities  is  one  of  the 
best  fertilizers  for  the  promotion  of  growth,  as  it  not 
only  supplies  Considerable  plant  food  but  assists  in 
making  that  already  in  the  ground  more  available  by 
its  action  in  loosening  up  the  soil. 

Cover  crops  of  legumes,  such  as  peas,  vetch,  fenu- 
greek, burr  clover  and  melilotus,  are  also  quite  gener- 
ally used  and  are  giving  good  results.  They  are  sown 
in  the  late  summer  or  early  fall,  and  allowed  to  grow 
during  the  fall  and  winter,  ahd  are  then  plowed  under 
in  the  spring.  The  value  of  a  cover  crop  depends 
largely  on  the  amount  of  growth  it  makes  and  the 
manner  in  which  it  is  turned  under.  To  get  the  best 
results  a  legume  should  be  selected  that  will  make  a 
heavy  growth  and  then  it  should  be  thoroughly  turned 
under  in  the  early  spring.  This  is  very  important, 
otherwise  it  draws  moisture  to  such  an  extent  from  the 
tree  that  it  does  more  harm  than  good.  No  cover 
crop,  fertilizer  or  manure  is  of  any  particular  value  on 
top  of  the  ground.  It  must  be  turned  under  or  placed 
in  the  ground  where  the  rootlets  of  the  tree  can  feed 
upon  it. 

Commercial  fertilizers  are  used  quite  extensively  and 
with  good  results,  but  on  account  of  the  cost,  a  good 
many  growers  do  not  use  enough  per  tree  to  get  the  best 
results.  It  is  necessary  to  use  some  commercial  fer- 
tilizer in  connection  with  the  use  of  barnyard  manure  or 
cover  crops,  in  order  to  supply  all  the  ingredients  neces- 
sary to  properly  feed  the  tree. 


The  planter  should  bear  in  m'nd  that  no  matter 
what  form  of  fertilization  is  used  satisfactory  results 
cannot  be  obtained  unless  the  soil  is  properly  cultivated, 
as  the  rootlets  of  the  tree  cannot  take  up  the  plant  food 
unless  the  soil  is  kept  in  condition  so  that  these  feeders 
can  continue  undisturbed  in  quest  of  it. 

THE  TIME  TO  PLANT 

Citrus  trees  being  evergreen,  they  can  be  planted  at 
all  seasons  of  the  year,  although  the  months  of  March, 
April,  May  and  June  are  considered  the  most  favorable. 
In  the  interior  valleys,  where  it  is  extremely  hot  and  dry 
during  the  summer  months,  it  is  advisable  to  plant  as 
early  as  possible  in  the  spring,  although  planting  should 
not  commence  until  the  ground  is  fairly  warm,  so  that 
the  tree  will  immediately  start  to  grow.  Trees  planted 
too  early,  while  the  ground  is  still  cold  and  wet,  will  re- 
main in  a  dormant  condition  until  the  ground  gets  suffi- 
ciently warmed  up  so  that  they  can  make  a  start.  When 
this  condition  prevails  for  any  length  of  time  it  causes 
the  finer  roots  to  decay;  as  a  consequence  of  this,  when 
the  tree  does  start,  it  will  make  rather  a  slow  growth 
until  new  rootlets  are  formed.  For  this  reason  it  is 
advisable  to  defer  planting  until  conditions  are  favor- 
able for  the  tree  to  start  to  grow  as  soon  as  planted. 

Along  the  coast  where  the  summer  c'imate  is  more 
moderate,  citrus  trees  are  planted  with  good  results  all 
through  the  spring  and  summer  months.  In  fact,  the 
trees  planted  during  June  and  July  seem  to  make  nearly 
as  good  a  growth  as  those  planted  in  the  spring.  Where 
planting  cannot  be  done  before  this  time,  it  is  my 
opinion  that  July  or  early  August  planting  is  preferable 
to  waiting  over  until  the  following  spring.  Even  though 
the  trees  do  not  make  quite  as  vigorous  a  growth  as 
those  planted  earlier  in  the  season,  they  make  sufficient 
growth  to  become  thoroughly  established,  in  conse- 
quence of  which,  they  are  all  ready  to  start  with  the 


A  one-year-old  Lemon  tree  in  the  orchard,  properly  pruned. 
The  importance  of  having  a  sturdy  crown  which  will 
later  on  carry  a  heavy  crop  of  fruit  is  illustrated  here. 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


67 


first  touch  of  spring  and  are  far  ahead  of  any  that  can 
be  planted  after  that  time. 

The  only  thing  necessary  to  successful  summer  plant- 
ing is  to  see  that  the  trees  are  properly  handled  from 
the  nursery  to  the  orchard  and  are  sufficiently  well 
irrigated  and  cultivated.  The  prompt  application  of 
water  to  newly  planted  trees  is  very  essential  in  late 
planting. 

PACKING  THE  ORANGE 

The  grower  with  five  or  ten  acres  of  oranges  usually 
•does  not  consider  it  necessary  to  pack  his  crop. 

It  has  been  a  practice  of  the  small  grower  to  deliver 
fruit  to  the  packing  house  without  noticing  its  condition 
and  quality,  whether  above  or  below  the  average  of  his 
locality.  Only  when  the  returns  come  in  does  he  realise 
that  had  the  quality  and  size  been  better  more  satis- 
factory returns  might  have  been  had.  It  must  be 
borne  in  mind  that  consumers  are  human  beings  like 
ourselves,  and  that  unless  the  quality  is  such  that  it 
appeals  to  them  they  are  going  to  pass  it  up  in  much  the 
same  manner  as  we  do  when  we  go  into  a  store  to  pur- 
chase fruit  or  vegetables  for  our  own  use. 

If  the  grower  will  begin  studying  packing  and  market- 
ing conditions,  noting  the  size  and  quality  of  fruit 
demanded,  methods  of  properly  handling  and  packing 
from  orchard  to  loaded  car,  it  will  often  not  only  assist 
to  correct  bad  conditions  in  the  orchard  for  the  pro- 
duction of  the  best  grades  of  fruit,  but  it  will  be  a  guide 
in  determining  what  shipper  to  intrust  with  your  crop, 
for  the  shipper  who  maintains  the  highest  and  most 
uniform  grade  of  packing  is  bound  to  get  the  most  satis- 
factory returns  for  the  grower.  It  is  necessary,  first  of 
all,  to  keep  the  orchard  in  such  condition  by  proper 
methods  of  irrigating  and  cultivating  that  it  will  produce 
only  the  best  quality  of  .fruit.  Size  and  quality  cannot 
always  be  governed  by  cultural  methods,  for  it  often 
happens  that  climatic  conditions  cause  the  fruit  to  be 
small  one  season  and  large  another,  in  spite  of  the  care 
exercised.  Taken  one  year  with  another,  however,  it 
pays  to  give  intensive  culture. 

In  picking  and  handling  the  fruit  care  is  essential, 
as  the  carrying  quality  of  the  fruit  depends  largely  on 
the  manner  in  which  it  is  handled  from  the  orchard  to 
the  car.  The  practice  of  having  fruit  picked  by  day 
labor  gives  better  results.  It  costs  a  little  more  to  har- 
vest a  crop  this  way,  but  the  results  are  much  more 
satisfactory,  as  the  loss  from  bruising  is  less,  which  more 
than  offsets  the  additional  cost. 

Care  must  be  exercised  in  picking  to  use  clippers  that 
do  not  cut  or  injure  the  fruit.  The  stems  must  be  cut 
close,  as  one  orange  with  a  long  stem  may  puncture  or 
bruise  a  dozen  or  more  while  passing  from  the  picking 
bags  to  the  boxes,  and  from  there  to  the  packing  house. 

It  was  estimated  that  from  eighty-five  to  ninety  per 
cent  of  the  heavy  decay  in  California  oranges  a  few 
years  ago  was  directly  due  to  the  methods  of  picking 
and  handling  the  fruit  in  the  orchards,  so  that  it  is  to 
the  interest  of  the  orchardist  to  personally  see  that  the 
pickers  are  careful  in  cutting  the  fruit  from  the  trees 
and  placing  them  in  the  boxes.  The  picking  bags  used 
for  this  purpose  are  open  at  the  bottom,  and  if  the 
picker  is  careful,  the  fruit  can  be  let  out  of  these  into 


the  boxes  without  allowing  it  to  drop  or  bump  against 
other  fruit  in  the  box.  Care  must  also  be  exercised  in 
filling  the  boxes  so  that  when  stacked  in  the  wagon  on 
top  of  each  other,  the  boxes  will  not  be  so  full  that  the 
fruit  will  get  bruised  or  smashed.  All  wagons  for  haul- 
ing the  fruit  should  be  equipped  with  springs  so  as  to 
reduce  the  jar  and  jolting  to  a  minimum. 

The  modern  equipment  in  packing  houses  is  calcu- 
lated to  reduce  to  a  minimum  the  chances  of  bruising 
the  fruit  while  passing  from  the  receiving  door  to 'the 
car,  and  the  old-time  graders  and  elevators,  whereby 
the  fruit  Was  subjected  to  drops  of  from  six  to  eight 
inches,  have  been  consigned  to  the  scrap  heap. 

To  those  who  have  never  seen  an  orange  packing 
house  in  operation,  a  description  of  the  methods  em- 
ployed therein  will,  no  doubt,  be  of  some  interest. 
The  fruit,  after  being  taken  in  at  the  receiving  door,  is 
trucked  to  the  grader,  then  dumped  into  a  hopper  and 
carried  by  a  belt  conveyor  to  the  brushes;  these  are  so 
arranged  that,  as  it  passes  through,  every  particle  of 
dust  is  brushed  off.    When  the  fruit  is  very  dirty  it  is 
sometimes  necessary  to  first  pass  it  through  washers, 
where  the  smut  and  dirt  is  washed  off  by  brushes 
operating  in  water;  it  must  then  be  thoroughly  dried 
before  going  back  to  the  grader.    If  the  washing  is  not  • 
necessary,  the  fruit  passes  from  brushes  to  the  sorting 
table  and  is  there  selected  as  to  quality.     The  regular 
grades  are  fancy,  choice,  standards  and  culls,  although 
some  packers  put  up  an  extra  fancy  and  an  extra  choice 
brand.     As  the  fruit  is  sorted,  it  is  conveyed  to  the 
different  graders.    In  large  houses  a  grader  is  used  for 
each  brand,  which  are  so  arranged  that  the  fruit  passes 
over  rollers  adjusted  so  that  the  different  sizes  fall 
through  into  bins  arranged  on  either  side  of  the  grader, 
and  from  which  the  packers  take  the  fruit  and  pack  it 
into  boxes.     Where  only  one  grader  is  used  and  one 
brand  of  fruit  runs  at  a  time,  the  remaining  fruit  is 
taken  from  the  sorting  table  before  it  reaches  the 
grader  and  sent  back  to  run  over  the  grader  later  on. 
In  the  larger  houses  where  several  graders  are  in  opera- 
tion at  the  same  time,  each  grade  of  fruit  is  passed  from 
the  sorting  tables  to  a  belt  conveyor  carrying  it  to  the 
grader  handling  that  grade  of  fruit;  this  does  away  with 
the  necessity  of  passing  any  of  the  fruit  over  the  sorting 
table  a  second  time.    In  sorting  the  fruit,  only  such  as  is 
considered  perfect,  that  is,  free  from  blemishes,  sound 
in  quality  and  fairly  smooth,  is  sorted  out  for  the  fancy 
or  extra  fancy  grade.    The  next  best  goes  to  the  choice 
grade,  and  consists  of  such  fruit  as  may  be  only  slightly 
blemished  and  possibly  not  quite  so  smooth  as  the  fancy 
grade,  but  otherwise  sound  and  of  good  quality;  that 
which  is  quite  badly  scarred  and  with  a  rough  skin,  but 
of  sound  and  good  keeping  quality,  is  packed  as  stand- 
ard;  and   all  fruit  showing  an  unsound  skin,  either 
from  being  bruised  in  picking  or  handling,  which  tends 
to  impair  its  keeping  qualities,  is  thrown  out  as  culls. 
The  standard  box  used  for  packing  oranges  is  divided 
into  two  compartments  ll^xll^xll^  inches,  and  the 
sizes  into  which  the  oranges  are  graded  are  64s,  80s, 
96s,  112s,  126s,  150s,  176s,  200s,  216s,  250s,  and  324s, 
the  bins  being  so  arranged  that  each  size  is  graded  into 
a  separate  receptacle.     After  being  packed  the  boxes- 


68 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  Citron  of  Commerce  loaded  with  fruit.    Note  how  crinkled  the  foliage  is  and  the  rough  skin  of  the  fruit. 


are  carried  to  the  press,  where  the  tops  are  nailed  on; 
they  are  then  ready  to  be  loaded  into  the  cars. 

A  standard  carload  of  oranges  consists  of  384  packed 
boxes  of  the  following  sizes :  not  more  than  38  boxes  of 
96s  or  112s,  76  boxes  of  126s  and  38  boxes  of  216s  or 
250s.  The  remainder  of  the  car  to  be  made  up  of  150s, 
176s,  and  200s.  All  larger  or  smaller  sizes,  and  any  in 
excess  of  the  above  numbers  of  96s,  112s,  126s,  216s, 
and 250s,  are  considered  off  sizes  and  are  discounted  from 
25  to  50  cents  per  box  according  to  the  market;  150s, 
176s  and  200s  are  standard  and  a  car  may  be  made  up 
entirely  of  these  sizes  without  discount,  although  most 
markets  demand  a  certain  amount  of  large  and  small 
fruit  and  packers  usually  try  to  load  in  accordance  with 
the  demand  of  the  market  to  which  they  are  shipping, 
as  the  buyer  will  always  pay  more  for  a  car  that  suits 
his  trade  than  for  one  in  which  there  are  undesirable 
siees. 

GROWING,  CURING,  PACKING  THE  LEMON 

Fruit  should  be  picked  as  soon  as  it  has  attained  its 
size  and  just  before  turning.  For  home  use  each  fruit 
should  be  wrapped  and  placed  in  a  box  in  a  cool  place. 
After  a  few  months  the  lemon  will  have  become  quite 
yellow  in  color  with  thin  skin  and  will  be  full  of  juice. 
Lemons  allowed  to  ripen  on  the  tree  are  thick  skinned, 
deficient  in  juice,  develop  extreme  bitterness  and  are  in 


every  way  inferior.  For  commercial  purposes  lemons 
are  cured,  before  shipping,  in  specially  designed  houses. 

In  localities  where  the  conditions  are  congenial  for 
its  perfect  development,  flowers,  immature  and  mature 
fruit  ready  to  pick  will  be  found  on  the  same  tree.  A 
few  trees  are  always  a  desirable  addition  to  the  wants  of 
every  home,  and  by  taking  precaution  to  plant  in  a 
protected  spot,  a  good  supply  of  fruit  is  always 
available. 

In  picking  lemons  rings  are  used  by  the  pickers  to 
prevent  the  picking  of  undersized  fruit.  For  winter 
picking  2  TS  inch  rings  are  used  and  for  spring  and 
summer  picking  2j/£  inch  rings. 

To  obtain  best  results,  both  as  to  size  and  keeping 
quality,  the  orchard  should  be  picked  over  every  four 
or  six  weeks.  Right  here  is  where  the  grower  cannot  be 
too  careful,  as  a  large  part  of  the  success  or  failure  o/ 
the  lemon  business  is  due  to  the  methods  of  picking  and 
handling  of  the  fruit  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that 
every  little  bruise  or  bump  affects  the  keeping  quality 
of  the  fruit.  When  lemons  are  to  be  kept  from  three 
to  six  months  before  going  on  to  the  market,  they  should 
be  handled  as  carefully  as  eggs. 

Properly  cured  lemons  may  be  kept  for  months,  and 
they  will  improve  in  market  qualities  by  a  thinning  and 
toughening  of  the  skin  and  by  an  increase  of  juice 
content. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


71 


THE  PERSIMMON 

In  this  country  there  are  but  two  varieties  in  culti- 
vation, viz.:  the  American  and  Japanese.  The  latter, 
on  account  of  their  attractive  appearance  and  large 
size,  are  destined  to  be  extensively  planted  as  soon  as 
their  commercial  importance  is  more  appreciated. 
The  impression  that  the  fruits  must  be  on  the  verge  of 
decay  before  they  can  be  eaten  has  militated  against 
their  sale.  There  is  much  variation  in  the  character 
of  the  fruit.  Some  varieties  are  not  astringent  at  all 
and  are  edible  in  early  autumn,  while  still  hard  and 
green.  Several  kinds  never  soften  at  all  until  they  de- 
cay; others  are  edible  only  when  fully  ripe  and  soft; 
still  others  lose  their  astringency  only  after  they  have 
been  dried,  and  some  so  abound  in  tannin  that  their 
juice,  when  expressed,  makes  a  valuable  varnish  for 
preservation  of  all  kinds  of  woodwork.  There  is  quite 
a  distinction  between  the  dark  and  light  fleshed  varie- 
ties. The  former  invariably  contain  seeds,  are  crisp 
and  meaty,  and  are  edible  before  they  soften,  although 
their  flavor  is  improved  considerably  when  they  reach 
this  stage;  the  light  fleshed  kinds  are  seedless  (or  mostly 
so),  and  cannot  be  eaten  until  they  soften. 

Persimmon  culture  commercially  centers  in  Japan. 

California  offers  great  possibilities'  in  the  culture  of 
this  most  delicious  fruit.  It  will  adapt  itself  to  a  wide 
range  of  localities.  The  fruit  will  very  often  hang  on 
until  January,  providing  there  have  been  no  heavy 
frosts  and  a  tree  loaded  with  this  deep  russet,  golden 
fruit  is  a  sight  to  behold  when  all  the  leaves  are  off. 

There  is  an  endless  number  of  varieties,  Japan  hold- 
ing the  lead  in  this  respect,  and  China  being  a  close 


A  Hyakume  Persimmon  tree  four  years  old.  It  has  a  mag- 
nificent crop  of  fine  fruit.  It  would  have  been  far  better 
for  the  future  of  this  tree  if  it  had  been  pruned  more 
severely  while  young. 


A  well  balanced  Persimmon  tree.     This  desirable  shape  is 
the  result  of  pruning. 

second.  Through  the  very  thorough  and  able  efforts 
of  the  Division  of  Seed  and  Plant  Introduction  of  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  it  is  hoped 
within  the  next  few  years  that  the  almost  hopeless  con- 
fusion which  seems  to  surround  the  nomenclature  of 
the  persimmon  will  be  solved.  It  is  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance that  nurserymen  should  grow  their  trees  ex- 
clusively in  this  state,  not  only  because  of  the  difficulty 
of  getting  the  imported  trees  to  grow,  but  also  because 
of  their  unreliability. 

PLANTING  AND  PRUNING 

Trees  should  be  planted  twenty-four  feet  apart. 
The  persimmon  has  a  rather  decided  tap  root  with 
numerous  small  fibrous  roots.  The  tap  root  should  be 
cut  back  to  eighteen  inches  and  fresh  cuts  made  on  all 
the  fibrous  roots.  After  the  trees  are  set,  head  back 
to  eighteen  inches.  The  first  winter  thin  out  the 
branches  not  leaving  more  than  four  to  form  the  head 
of  the  tree.  Cut  these  back  at  least  one-half.  In  the 
second,  third  and  fourth  years  the  pruning  of  the  tree 
should 'be  continued  to  fashion  the  tree  into  .the  typical 
goblet  form.  A  better  quality  of  fruit  running  into 
large  sizes  with  a  more  regular  distribution  of  fruit  over 
the  entire  tree  will  be  effected  by  pruning  every  year. 
The  trees  are  quite  hardy  and  fruit  freely  in  all  sections 
of  the  Coast -and  in  the  Southern  States,  and  as  far 
north  as  Washington,  D.  C.  Persimmons  do  not  bloom 
until  the  middle  of  May;  therefore,  under  average  nor- 
mal conditions  the  trees  always  bear  fruit. 

The  astringency  is  readily  removed  by  placing  the 
fruit  in  Japanese  tubs,  from  which  saki  (rice-beer)  has 
been  recently  withdrawn.  After  the  persimmons  are 
placed  in  the  tub,  close  carefully  to  exclude  the  air. 
In  ten  days  the  fruit  will  have  lost  all  its  bitterness. 


72 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'   GUIDE 


The  Hachiya  Persimmon,  very  much  reduced.  There 
is  hardly  a  place  in  California  where  the  Persimmon 
will  not  thrive  well  and  produce  heavy  crops  annually. 


A  new  simple  process  of  alcohol  inoculation  has  been 
practissd  lately.  Fierce  the  fruit  at  the  bottom  several 
times  with  a  common  needle  dipped  in  alcohol  and  pack 
them  in  a  tight  box  or  container  lined  with  straw  and 
with  layers  between  the  rows,  keeping  the  box  closed 
for  ten  days. 

It  is  not  generally  known  that  the  persimmon  is  de- 
licious when  dried.  It  is  so  sweet,  so  rich  in  sugar  and 
has  such  a  unique  flavor  that  one  who  has  never  eaten 
the  dried  persimmon  before  immediately  comes  to  the 
conclusion  that  the  fruits  have  been  crystallized.  The 
method  of  drying  is  simple:  the  skin  is  pared  off  and  the 
fruits  are  suspended  by  the  stems,  tying  them  with 
string  to  a  rope  or  a  stick  and  exposing  to  the  sun; 
they  gradually  lose  their  original  form,  turn  quite 
dark  and  are  covered  with  sugar  crystals;  The 
dried  persimmon  is  considered  by  many  to  be  more 
delicious  than  the  "date  of  commerce."  Fruit  should 
be  picked  for  drying  when  yellow  and  firm. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES 

Dai-Dai-Maru,  Hachiya,  Hyakume,  Tane-Nashi, 
Yemen. 

VARIETIES  WORTHY  OF  TRIAL 

Delicious,  Fuyugaki,  Mammoth  Gosho,  Sato,  Tamo- 
pan,  Twentieth  Century,  Yami-Yemon. 

TIME  OF  RIPENING  OF  COMMERCIAL 

VARIETIES 

September  November 

Tane-Nashi.  Hyakume. 

October  December 

Hachiya,  Dai-Dai-Maru.          Yemon. 


THE  POMEGRANATE 

The  fruit  of  the  pomegranate  will  be  remembered  in 
connection  with  Scriptural  history,  where  it  is  men- 
tioned in  conjunction  with  that  of  the  vine,  fig  and 
olive.  Its  cultivation,  therefore,  dates  back  to  remote 
antiquity.  It  is  much  prized  in  the  south  of  Europe  as 
an  ornamental  tree,  and  in  countries  around  the  Medi- 
terranean it  is  valued  very  highly  for  its  effective  flower- 
ing qualities  as  well  as  for  its  delicious  fruits.  As  our 
climatic  conditions  in  the  interior  valleys  are  very  simi- 
lar to  those  countries  in  the  south  of  Europe  where  it 
flourishes  so  well,  it  is  coming  more  and  more  into 
favor.  The  fruits  are  very  showy,  this  being  true  more 
particularly  of  the  Wonderful.  As  a  table  decoration 
there  is  no  fruit  which  is  more  attractive.  If  there  is 
any  objection  to  the  pomegranate  at  all  it  may  be  sum- 
marized as  being  due  to  the  seeds  in  the  pulp.  It  is 
said  that  there  is  a  variety  in  which  these  seeds  are  en- 
tirely absent.  In  my  travels  abroad  I  endeavored  to 
find  a  seedless  variety  in  Asia  Minor  and  in  southern 
Europe,  but  met  with  no  success  in  my  quest.  Numer- 
ous varieties  have  been  introduced  by  the  Division 
of  Plant  Industry  of  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture  and  by  private  individuals,  but  thus  far 
none  have  been  found  which  are  in  any  way  superior  to 
the  well  established  varieties.  As  the  pomegranate 
bears  heavily  and  regularly  every  year,  requiring  very 
little  care,  and  adapts  itself  to  a  great  variety  of  soils, 
there  is  no  reason  why  it  should  not  eventually  become 
a  very  important  commercial  fruit.  A  cooling  drink 
known  as  grenadine  is  made  from  the  pulpy  seeds  with 
the  addition  of  water  and  sugar.  This  is  used  very 
extensively  in  the  southern  part  of  Europe.  It  is  said 
to  be  especially  grateful  in  fevers.  The  rind  of  the 
fruit,  when  boiled,  has  for  many  generations  past  been 
the  remedy  for  taeniae,  and  a  jet  black,  smooth  writing 
ink  is  also  made  from  it. 

SITUATION  AND  SOILS 

I  have  used  the  pomegranate  for  a  number  of  years 
in  depressions  in  my  vineyard  where  the  ground  was  so 
damp  for  a  good  part  of  the  year  that  grape  vines  in- 
variably died.  The  pomegranate  luxuriates  in  these 
spots,  and  their  spontaneity  of  growth  is  simply 
astounding.  The  pomegranate  will  thrive  in  any  part 
of  the  state,  but  commercial  planting  should  be -con- 
fined to  sections  having  comparatively  high  tempera- 
tures during  the  summer  months.  In  such  localities  it 
reaches  its  highest  point  of  perfection.  It  is  not  very 
particular  as  to  soil  and  it  will  thrive  in  water-logged 
soils  and  those  more  or  less  impregnated  with  alkali  in 
which  other  trees  will  fail  entirely. 

DISTANCES  APART  AND  PRUNING 

The  very  fact  that  the  pomegranate  produces  so 
heavily  with  so  little  care  has  caused  many  growers  to 
allow  the  shrubs  to  grow  at  their  own  sweet  will.  This 
is  a  mistake.  To  get  the  best  results  it  should  be  started 
with  a  single  stem  about  sixteen  inches  high.  If  allowed 
to  throw  out  numerous  suckers  from  the  ground-  it  is 
more  difficult  to  keep  the  bush  in  shape  and  under 
control  than  when  starting  with  a  single  stem.  The 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


73 


The  Pomegranate  should  be  started  with  a  single  stem.    Enormous  crops  of  fruit  are  gathered  from  trees  shaped 

like  this  one. 


body  of  the  tree  may  well  be  termed  a  unit.  With  this 
unit  fixed  the  shaping  of  the  subject  is  by  far  a  simpler 
matter  than  when  having  several  framework  branches 
coming  out  from  j  ust  above  and  underneath  the  surface 
of  the  soil.  For  the  first  three  years  the  shrub  should 
be  shaped  by  thinning  out  and  shortening  in  the  current 
season's  growth.  After  the  head  of  the  shrub  is  formed 
the  pruning  resolves  itself  into  thinning  and  shaping 
the  plant  to  keep  it  within  bounds.  Never  plant  closer 
than  twelve  feet  apart  in  deep,  loamy  soils;  fifteen  feet 
apart  is  preferable.  The  pomegranate  is  raised  from 
cuttings.  As  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  observe  the 
varieties  grown  in  California  seem  to  adapt  themselves 
to  a  great  variety  of  soils. 

GATHERING 

On  account  of  its  rather  thick  skin  the  fruit  will 
withstand  quite  a  lot  of  abuse.  The  one  point  to  guard 
against  is  to  pick  the  fruits  before  they  are  rained  on, 
for  when  this  occurs  many  of  them  will  split,  making 
them  unfit  for  shipment.  After  they  are  gathered  the 
fruits  if  stored  in  a  cool,  dry  place  will  keep  for  months; 
the  skin  loses  its  striking  lustre,  and  the  fruit  shrinks 
some,  but  this  in  no  way  impairs  the  quality  or  the 
flavor  of  the  pulp. 

MERITORIOUS  VARIETIES 

Paper-shell,  Sweet-fruited,  Wonderful. 


THE  AVOCADO 

It  is  very  fortunate  indeed  for  the  fruit  growers  of 
California  that  the  state,  probably  more  so  than  any 
other  in  the  Union,  possesses  such  a  variety  of  climate 
and  soils;  otherwise  avocado  culture  would  have  fallen 
by  the  wayside  long  ere  this.  In  my  travels  throughout 
the  state  I  have  allowed  no  opportunity  to  pass  not  to 
observe  the  avocado  where  I  noticed  that  a  grower  was 
devoting  considerable  of  an  acreage  to  its  cultivation, 
probably  the  most  valuable,  from  a  dietetic  standpoint, 
of  any  fruit  grown  in  this  state  today.  There  is  no 
denying  the  fact  that  the  industry  has  a*  very  great 
future.  It  must  also  be  admitted  at  the  same  time  that 
the  successful  growing  of  the  avocado  is  going  to  be  con- 
fined to  those  particular  sections  of  the  state  where  the 
lime  grows  to  the  best  advantage.  The  avocado  blooms 
and  sets  fruit  at  all  seasons  of  the  year;  therefore  it  is  a 
foregone  conclusion  that  out  of  a  very  large  number  of 
varieties  on  the  market  now  the  list  will  finally  settle 
down  to  a  half  a  dozen  sorts  of  real  merit.  When  this 
time  arrives  we  will  begin  to  engage  in  the  culture  of  the 
avocado  in  earnest.  As  one  grower,  F.  O.  Popenoe, 
who  has  probably  had  more  experience  and  has  given 
more  thought  and  attention  to  the  culture  of  the 
avocado  than  any  other  man  in  the  state,  tersely  ex- 
presses it:  "I  believe  it  can  safely  be  said  that  the 
most  important  problem  which  we  avocado  growers  of 


74 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


(Lower) 

A  hard-shelled  Avocado. 
Note  the  pebbly  surface. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


75 


California  are  facing  at  the  present  time  is  the  question 
of  varieties."  Why  do  I  contend  that  the  culture  of 
the  avocado  is  going  to  be  confined  to  a  prescribed  dis- 
trict? It  is  simply  because  I  realize  from  my  personal 
investigations  that  with  very  few  exceptions 'the  avo- 
cado is  more  tender  than  the  lime,  and  that.it  is  going 
to  reach  its  greatest  perfection  where  as  a  rule  there  is 
very  little  danger  during  the  winter  months  of  any 
great  extremes  of  cold.  The  alluring  accounts  which 
have  gone  the  rounds  of  the  great  profits  to  be  derived 
in  avocado  culture  should  be  taken  with  a  good  sized 
grain  of  allowance.  To  succeed  well  the  avocado  must 
not  only  have  an  abundance  of  water  but  a  good,  deep 
soil,  and  in  addition  to  this  a  climate  where  the  air  is 
tempered  by  the  ocean  breezes. 

It  is  quite  possible  that  this  culture  may  be  carried 
on  successfully  in  the  foothill  districts  of  the  interior 
valleys,  but  I  would  advise  those  who  have  the  fad  to 
exercise  considerable  caution  in  their  efforts.  Far 
better  to  plant  fruits  the  success  of  which  has  been 
demonstrated  by  years  of  actual  trial,  than  to  be  in- 
duced to  engage  in  the  growing  of  a  fruit  of  doubtful 
value  from  a  standpoint  of  making  money. 

STOCKS 

The  hardier  Mexican  types  have  been  used  for  this 
purpose.  As  to  what  will  finally  prove  to  be  the  best 
stocks  for  the  avocado  is  up  to  the  present  time  just  as 
chaotic  as  the  numerous  list  of  varieties.  That  ulti- 
mately there  will  be  varieties  having  points  in  their 
favor  for  stock  there  can  be  no  question.  The  seedlings 
are  easily  grown.  They  are  placed  in  pots  with  the 
blunt  end  down  and  with  the  apex  slightly  exposed. 
After  they  have  attained  a  growth  of  a  foot  they  are 
transferred  to  larger  receptacles  and  when  the  plants 
have  attained  a  caliper  of  three-eighths  to  one-half  inch 
they  are  budded.  The  trees  make  such  a  very  rapid 
growth  in  nursery  rows  that  nurserymen  are  finding  it 
far  more  satisfactory  to  produce  the  trees  by  raising 
them  in  boxes  than  by  planting  the  seedlings  out  and 
balling  the  trees  when  they  are  ready  for  sale.  The 
trees  transplanted  from  boxes  not  only  start  out  more 
quickly  when  planted  in  orchard  form  but  in  addition 
to  this  they  can  be  trained  to  much  better  advantage. 

DISTANCES  APART  AND  PRUNING 

The  avocado  is  a  rank  growing  tree  and  is  also  in- 
clined to  be  of  a  very  spreading  habit,  therefore  the 
trees  should  not  be  planted  too  close  together.  Thirty 
feet  apart  is  a  good  distance.  In  planting  the  boxed  or 
balled  plants  observe  the  instructions  given  for  planting 
balled  citrus  trees,  and  also  the  statements  made  under 
the  heading  of  watering  and  irrigating.  Each  tree 
should  be  staked  when  it  is  planted,  using  a  coast  red- 
wood stake  2  inch  x  2  inch  x  6  feet  long.  The  tree  should 
be  trained  to  at  least  four  feet  from  the  ground  before 
it  is  allowed  to  branch.  Great  care  should  be  exercised 
not  only  *o  whitewash  the  body  of  the  tree  but  also  in 
addition  to  this  to  wrap  it  with  burlap  or  use  a  tree  pro- 
tector to  prevent  sunburn.  As  the  tree  is  very  sus- 
ceptible to  sunburn  every  precaution  should  be  exer- 
cised to  prevent  it.  As  usual,  the  old  story  that  the 
avocado  should  never  be  pruned  is  going  the  rounds  of 


the  press.  This  has  as  much  foundation  as  the 
recommendations  which  have  been  circulated 
throughout  California  in  reference  to  the  pruning  of 
many  other  fruit  trees.  It  is  quite  true  that  it  is  neces- 
sary to  use  proper  precautions  in  the  pruning  of  the 
tree  and  that  it  would  be  dangerous  indeed  to  follow 
the  course  recommended  for  pruning  deciduous  trees, 
but  nevertheless  shaping  is  essential.  There  is  a  ten- 
dency on  the  part  of  most  of  the  varieties  to  grow 
downward  and  it  is  no  uncommon  thing  to  have 
branches  lying  on  the  ground  and  loaded  with  fruit. 
It  seems  to  be  the  very  nature  of  the  tree  to  do  this. 
This  is  why  it  is  necessary  to  start  the  framework 
branches  high  and  allow  them  to  droop  to  the  ground 
rather  than  to  permit  them  to  shoot  from  the  body  of 
the  tree  close  to  the  ground.  The  pruning  should  be 
done  with  a  view  of  promoting  a*n  upward  growth  to 
bring  about  a  series  of  elbows  in  the  trees  and  to  prevent 
the  development  of  long  straggling  branches.  Pruning 
and  shaping  should  only  be  done  when  the  tree  is  in  its 
most  active  state  of  growth,  and  when  a  cut  is  made  it 
should  be  carefully  waxed  or  painted,  otherwise  there  is 
a  tendency  toward  die-back. 

GATHERING 

Under  favorable  conditions  it  is  going  to  be  possible 
to  gather  avocados  at  all  seasons  of  the  year.  There  are 
two  distinct  types:  those  with  thin  skins  and  the  so- 
called  hard-shells.  The  former  must  be  very  carefully 
gathered  and  picked  when  they  have  reached  their  size 
and  before  they  commence  to  get  soft,  otherwise  they 
will  deca}/  very  quickly.  Whenever  they  show  an  indi- 
cation to  soften  somewhat  (a  condition  which  is  readily 
determined  by  pressing  between  the  fingers)  they  are 
ready  for  consumption.  The  thick-skinned  varieties 
may  be  shipped  long  distance  with  every  assurances,  if 
picked  when  they  have  reached  their  size,  that  they,  will 
keep  for  several  weeks  in  the  very  best  of  condition. 

EATING  THE  AVOCAB% 

This  fruit  has  well  been  named  the  po&r  man's  food. 
In  the  countries  of  South  America,  Mexico  and  other 
tropical  countries  where  it  grows  wild,  the  very  fact  that 
the  trees  are  such  abundant  bearers  and  that  the  fruits 
possess  all  the  food  ingredients  to  sustain  the  human 
body,  are  the  combinatiors  which  have  caused  this  fruit 
to  be  so  designated.  The  fruits  sell  with  us  at  very 
high  prices,  and  it  is  more  than  likely  they  will  continue 
to  do  so  for  many  years  to  come.  Many  people  must 
acquire  the  taste  for  the  fruit,  but  once  having  done  so 
it  is  difficult  indeed  to  resist  the  longing  for  this  most' 
palatable  and  really  wonderful  fruit.  There  are  many 
ways  of  preparing  it  for  the  table,  but  the  usual  method 
in  vogue  is  to  halve  it,  remove  the  seed,  pour  a  little 
oil  or^rinegar  (lime  juice  is  better),  add  a  little  table 
salt  and  pepper,  and  it  is  ready  to  be  egjpfi- 

IRRIGATION 

Instructions  given  on  this  point  for  the  citrus  fruits 
are  adaptable  to  the  avocado. 

MERITORIOUS  VARIETIES 

Azusa,  Carton,  Fuerte,  Harman,  Lyon,  Meserve, 
Northrop,  Sharpless,  Spinks,  Taft. 


76 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


CHERIMOYER 

There  are  grave  doubts  as  to  whether  this  fruit  will 
ever  attain  any  great  commercial  importance.  Its  cul- 
ture has  thus  far  been  confined  to  the  counties  south  of 
the  Tehachapi,  and  in  these  only  in  sections  where  there 
was  comparatively  little  danger  from  cold  weather. 
Botanically,  it  is  known  as  Anona  cherimolia.  Its  com- 
mon name,  Custard  Apple,  is  derived  from  its  having 
the  consistency  of  custard  with  the  blended  flavors 
of  the  pineapple  and  the  banana.  Most  of  the  trees 
which  are  sold  are  seedlings.  If  greater  interest  is 
manifested  in  this  fruit,  named  varieties  will  undoubt- 
edly be  introduced.  It  is  quite  variable  in  the  size  of 
the  fruits  produced,  running  from  an  inch  in  diameter 
up  to  eight  inches  on  the  same  tree.  Where  the  trees  do 
well  they  are  very  prolific  and  attain  quite  a  large  size. 
The  skin  is  overlapping  and  the  fruit  is  shaped  like  a 
strawberry.  They  come  into  bearing  when  four  years 
old.  The  fruit  should  be  picked  when  matured  and  laid 
away  for  a  few  days  in  a  ccol  place  before  they  are  ready 
for  eating.  For  shipping  they  should  first  be  wrapped 
in  paper  and  then  packed  in  excelsior.  The  boxes  in 
which  they  are  packed  should  be  ventilated. 

THE  FEIJOA 

Another  of  our  semi-tropical  fruits  possessing  merit 
but  one  which  was  boomed  to  the  limit  by  over-zealous 
nurserymen  without  testing  out  its  value  fully.  This 
fruit  is  simply  another  example  of  having  its  merits 
extolled  before  determining  some  of  the  salient  facts 


The  Cherimoyer  can  be  grown  in  many  places  in  the 
southern  part  of  California.    Single  fruits  quite  fre- 
quently weigh  a  pound  or  more. 


concerning  it.  It  was  widely  distributed,  and  although 
it  bloomed  profusely  the  bushes  failed  in  most  instances 
to  set  fruit,  and  in  consequence  of  this  it  lost  its  popu- 
larity. Varieties  are  now  being  introduced  having 
fruits  twice  the  size  of  a  hen's  egg,  and  are  known  to 
bear  regularly  and  abundantly.  The  very  fact  that  the 
shrub  is  very  hardy,  that  the  fruits  have  a  mingling  of 
flavors,  all  of  which  are  attractive  to  the  palate  (the 
only  objection  being  the  numerous  seeds),  will  cause  it 
to  be  planted  again  on  a  limited  scale'.  It  makes  a  very 
fine  transparent  jelly.  It  should  have  a  place  in  every 
garden,  for  it  has  a  series  of  combinations  which  will 
make  it  a  valuable  addition  to  every  home. 

THE  GUAVA 

Guavas  will  only  be  grown  to  any  extent  in  the  coun- 
ties south  of  the  Tehachapi.  If  planted  elsewhere  they 
will  have  to  be  protected,  except  perhaps  in  favored 
locations  in  the  foothills;  otherwise  they  will  freeze  to 
the  ground  during  the  winter  months.  There  are  two 
varieties,  the  strawberry  and  the  lemon  guava.  The 
former  has  been  more  widely  planted.  The  shrub  is 
very  attractive  both  when  in  flower  and  when  loaded 
with  its  crop  of  aromatic  fruits.  Its  leaves  are  glossy 
green;  the  flower  is  snow-white  with  a  decided  jasmine 
scent.  The  fruits  of  the  strawberry  type  are  colored 
like  a  strawberry,  hence  the  name;  while  the  lemon 
guava  has  fruits  of  a  lemon-yellow  color.  The  straw- 
berry guava  is  by  far  the  better  one  to  plant  because  it 
is  very  much  hardier  and  bears  much  more  abundantly 
than  the  other.  As  in  some  other  fruits  of  this  type  the 
objectionable  feature  to  it  is  its  innumerable  seeds. 
The  guava  makes  a  very  superior  jelly,  and  in  localities 
where  it  thrives  it  grows  with  so  little  care  it  deserves 
receiving  more  attention  than  has  been  accorded  to  it. 

THE  LOQUAT 

As  an  ornamental  tree  much  may  be  said  in  its  favor. 
Its  wide  adaptability,  there  being  very  few  places  in 
California  where  it  can  not  be  grown  successfully,  and 
in  addition  to  this  its  delicious  fruits,  coming  in  before 
any  of  the  other  table  fruits  in  the  spring,  should  cause 
it  to  be  more  widely  planted  than  it  has  been.  It 
blooms  in  November,  the  flowers  appearing  in  large 
panicles.  They  are  very  sweet  scented  and  suffuse  the 
atmosphere  when  in  full  bloom  with  their  delicious 
aroma.  Botanically,  it  is  known  as  Eriobotrya  jabonica, 
and  it  is  frequently  characterized  as  the  "date  plum." 
Its  native  habitat  is  China  and  Japan.  Preference 
should  be  given  to  the  improved  budded  varieties,  as 
the  fruit  averages  much  larger  in  size,  the  seeds  usually 
varying  from  two  to  three  in  each  fruit,  being  very 
much  smaller  than  in  the  seedlings.  The  trees  are 
either  budded  on  loquat  seedlings  or  on  the  quince. 
When  grown  on  the  quince  it  is  practicable  to  trans- 
plant without  balling  in  the  winter  months  provided 
the  leaves  are  stripped  from  the  plant.  Many  budded 
varieties  have  been  introduced  from  Japan  and  south- 
ern Europe,  but  none  of  them  equal  in  size  or  compare 
in  quality  to  the  sort.*  introduced  by  C.  P.  Taft,  of 
Orange,  California.  The  fruit  is  produced  in  immense 
clusters  and  makes  a  striking  contrast  with  the  large, 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


77 


78 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


deep  green,  ruffled  foliage.  The  improved  types  are  as 
large  as,  or  even  larger  in  some  instances  than,  a  ban- 
tam egg.  The  trees  have  been  planted  in  a  limited  way 
commercially.  As  they  eventually  attain  a  height  of 
twenty  feet  and  have  quite  a  spread  they  should  never 
be  planted  in-  orchard  form  closer  than  twenty-four 
feet.  The  fruit  should  be  allowed  to  ripen  on  the  trees 
until  it  attains  an  orange-yellow  color.  If  carefully 
handled  it  may  be  packed  in  strawberry  or  grape 
baskets  and  will  carry  a  considerable  distance  when 
shipped  by  express.  Outside  of  its  value  as  an  attractive 
and  delicious  table  fruit  it  is  made  into  jams,  jellies 
and  preserves.  The  pruning  should  be  confined  first  of 
all  to  starting  the  branches  about  twenty-four  inches 
from  the  ground.  Outside  of  thinning  the  branches 
which  may  be  overlapping  or  crowding  it  will  take  care 
of  itself. 

VARIETIES  TO  GROW 
Advance,  Champagne,  Early  Red,  Premier. 

THE  BANANA 

The  only  satisfaction  that  can  be  derived  from  growing 
the  banana  in  California  is  based  on  the  fact  that  this 
distinctly  tropical  plant  can  be  grown  and  does  produce 
very  palatable  fruits  in  very  much  favored  sections  in 
some  of  the  southern  counties  of  the  state.  It  is  a 
definite  demonstration  of  how  closely  this  climate 
approaches  that  of  the  tropics  without  having  the 
enervating  effect  of  that  climate.  The  banana  is  grown 
from  suckers.  An  abundance  of  water  and  fertilizer, 
consisting  of  rubbish,  which  should  be  spaded  in  around 
the  plant,  will  promote  a  rapid  and  luxuriant  growth. 
A  sucker  will  invariably  produce  a  bunch  of  bananas 
within  twelve  to  eighteen  months  after  it  is  planted. 
The  bunch  should  be  picked  just  as  soon  as  the  fruits 
have  attained  their  size  and  while  still  green.  By  stor- 
ing in  a  dark  room,  if  the  weather  is  warm,  the  fruit 
soon  matures  and  it  is  ready  for  the  table.  If  the 
weather  is  cold,  when  the  bananas  are  handled  com- 
mercially, it  is  necessary  to  store  them  in  an  artifically- 
heated  room. 

VARIETIES 

Cavendishii,  Orientum  or  Hart's  Choice,  Sapientum 
or  Orinoco. 

THE  JUJUBE 

The  jujube  (Zizyphus  jujuba)  has  been  growing  in 
California  for  a  number  of  years,  having  been  introduced 
by  G.  P.  Rixford  in  1876,  at  that  time  a  member  of 
the  staff  of  the  San  Francisco  Bulletin,  but  now 
Physiologist  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  U.  S. 
Department  of  Agriculture.  The  oldest  trees  are  said 
to  be  growing  in  Sonoma  valley.  Isolated  specimens  are 
to  be  found  growing  in  both  the  Sacramento  and  the 
San  Joaquin  valleys.  The  climatic  conditions  of  the 
interior  valleys  seem  to  be  particularly  favorable  to 
its  rapid  growth.  It  is  very  extensively  grown  in  north- 
ern China,  where  hundreds  of  varieties,  it  has  been  said, 
have  been  developed.  It  grows  in  the  driest  of  loca- 
tions and  is  very  resistant  to  alkali.  Many  new  and 


This  picture  was  not  taken  in  the  tropics  but  on  the 

property  of  Wm.   Plotts,  near  Whittier,  Los  Angeles 

County,  in  the  month  of  December.   Bananas  are  part 

of  the  family  diet  the  year  round. 

valuable  varieties  have  been  introduced  by  the  Office 
of  Foreign  Seed  and  Plant  Introduction  of  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and  if  eventually 
this  becomes  an  industry  of  any  importance  in  Cali- 
fornia, we  will  owe  a  debt  of  gratitude  to  this  great  de- 
partment of  our  National  Government  which  has  ac- 
complished more  in  behalf  of  the  agricultural  and  horti- 
cultural interests  of  the  United  States  than  any  other 
institution  of  like  character  in  the  world.  Many  of 
these  new  varieties  of  jujube  are  now  being  experi- 
mented with  at  the  Plant  Introduction  Garden  near 
Chico,  California.  Some  sorts  are  eaten  fresh,  while 
others  are  dried.  The  largest  varieties  are  processed 
by  boiling  in  sugar  and  honey.  They  make  most  desir- 
able sweetmeats  when  so  processed  and  are  even  more 
delicious  than  the  Persian  dates  of  commerce.  The 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


79 


80 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


The  Carob  is  not  only  a  striking  avenue  tree,  but  it  is 

adapted  to  the  driest  of  locations.    The  beans  make 

fine  stock  food. 


trees  bear  enormously,  and  they  are  very  ornamental. 
The  fruits  are  very  palatable  whether  processed  or  not, 
therefore  we  have  in  the  jujube  combinations  which 
will  cause  it  to  become,  once  its  value  is  better  under- 
stood, a  valuable  acquisition  to  our  list  of  fruits.  The 
only  varieties  on  the  market  now  are  those  produced 
from  seed. 

PROCESSING 

The  credit  for  successfully  processing  the  first  jujubes 
in  the  United  States  is  due  to  Mrs.  R.  L.. Beagles,  wife 
of  the  Farm  Superintendent  of  the  Plant  Introduction 
Field  Station,  of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture, 
Chico,  California.  The  process  is  as  follows:  First  of 
all  provide  a  tray  with  tacks  driven  through  it  a  six- 
teenth of  an  inch  to  prick  the  fruits.  Then  cook  in  a 
syrup  consisting  of  one  cup  of  sugar  to  one  of  water, 
for  a  period  of  one  hour.  Drain  the  syrup  off,  roll  the 
fruits  in  granulated  sugar,  and  allow  them  to  dry  for  a 
period  of  one  week,  when  they  are  ready  for  consump- 
tion. The  fruits  should  be  gathered  while  firm. 

THE  CAROB 

In  the  Cyclopedia  of  Horticulture,  Bailey  refers  to 
the  Ceretonia  siliqua  as  a  very  handsome  evergreen 
tree  bearing  large  pods  that  are  used  somewhat  for 
human  food  but  chiefly  for  forage.  The  cultivation  of 
this  tree  dates  back  to  historic  times.  The  impression 
prevails  that  this  is  a  tree  to  which  reference  is  made  in 
the  Bible  as  the  honey  locust  or  St.  John's  bread-fruit 
tree.  It  was  introduced  in  California  a  number  of 
years  ago  and  the  largest  specimens  are  to  be  found 
growing  in  Santa  Barbara.  After  it  attains  an  age  of 


six  years  it  will  withstand  the  cold  weather  of  the  inte- 
rior valleys,  but  it  must  be  protected  while  it  is  young, 
otherwise  it  will  freeze  to  the  ground,  starting  out  again 
in  the  spring  from  the  roots.  There  are  thousands  of 
acres  of  land  in  the  southern  part  of  the  state  on  the 
hillsides  and  on  soils  of  a  rocky  nature  where  this  tree 
could  be  grown,  and  it  would  not  only  transform  the 
landscape,  being  an  evergreen,  but  would  make  entirely 
unproductive  land  valuable  because  of  the  great  nutri- 
ment which  the  pods  contain  for  the  fattening  of  cattle, 
hogs,  sheep,  etc.  Until  a  few  years  ago  all  the  varieties 
grown  in  California  were  raised  from  seed.  Probably 
the  largest  collection  of  varieties  were  those  which  had 
been  grafted  on  the  seedling  tree  on  one  of  my  places 
near  Fresno,  the  buds  having  been  received  from  the 
Division  of  Seed  and  Plant  Introduction  of  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture.  Fortunately  this 
tree  was  well  protected  and  has  been  the  source  of 
supply  for  budding  over  and  replacing  trees  which  have 
been  killed  by  cold  weather  in  other  parts  of  the  state. 
In  the  countries  bordering  on  the  Mediterranean  sea 
the  large  pods,  which  are  rich  in  protein  and  sugar,  are 
a  very  important  forage  crop,  being  eaten  with  avidity 
by  all  kinds  of  stock,  besides  furnishing  considerable 
sustenance  to  the  poor  in  times  of  scarcity  of  other 
foods.  The  pods  are  also  used  for  the  manufacture  of 


A  pruned  and  unpruned  grapevine.     The  figure  to  the  left 
shows  how  to  prepare  vines  for  planting. 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


81 


A  three-year-old  Thompson  Seedless  vine  demonstrating  the  method  of  pruning  and  the  distribution  of  the  grapes. 


syrups  and  a  variety  of  fermented  drinks.  Thousands 
of  tons  are  annually  imported  into  England,  where  they 
are  ground  for  stock  food.  Carob  pods  form  the  basis 
of  the  best  condition  powders  for  stock.  The  pods 
sell  for  sixty  dollars  per  ton  or  even  more  than  this  in 
some  instances.  The  tree  is  well  adapted  for  avenue 
purposes,  and  although  it  will  grow  with  little  or  no 
care  it  responds  readily  to  goed  care  and  cultivation. 
The  tree  blooms  in  the  fall  of  the  year  and  the  crop  of 
beans  is  ready  for  harvesting  just  a  short  time  before 
the  trees  commence  to  bloom.  The  trees  should  be 
planted  thirty  feet  apart.  In  order  to  grow  a  well 
shaped  tree  it  is  necessary  to  set  a  stake  beside  each 
tree.  The  head  should  be  started  four  feet  from  the 
ground.  For  the  first  few  years  some  pruning  and  thin- 
ning should  be  done,  but  after  it  has  once  taken  on  its 
form  it  requires  very  little  attention.  The  varieties  on 
the  market  now  are  seedlings.  Within  the  next  few 
years  budded  trees  of  recognized  value  will  be  offered 
for  sale.  The  pods  being  hard  and  dry,  drop  to  the 
ground  when  ripe  of  their  own  accord,  or  they  are 
knocked  off  with  light  poles.  The  expense  of  harvesting 
is  therefore  very  light. 

It  is  a  pleasure  to  note  that  the  agricultural  press  is 
exploiting  the  possibilities  of  this  tree  becoming  an 
important  factor  in  the  horticultural  development  of 
California.  Many  of  the  out-of-the-way  places  on  the 
farm  could  be  planted  to  good  advantage  with  the 
carob. 


THE  GRAPE 

Even  in  Europe  there  is  a  charm  in  the  name  "Cali- 
fornia." This  should  occasion  no  surprise,  for  within 
the  confines  of  this  state  there  is  not  a  single  variety  of 
fruit  which  can  not  be  grown  to  as  great  an  advantage 
here  as  in  its  nativity,  where  the  culture  has  extended 
into  centuries.  With  the  exception  of  the  countries 
bordering  on  the  Mediterranean,  where  there  is  no  rain 
during  the  summer  months,  all  the  varieties  of  grapes 
for  table  purposes  which  flourish  with  us  can  only  be 
grown  in  Europe  under  glass.  The  quality  of  grapes 
grown  under  glass  is  as  a  matter  of  fact  better  than 
those  grown  in  the  open.  The  culture  of  grapes  in 
greenhouses  is  carried  on  more  extensively  in  Belgium, 
Holland  and  England  than  in  any  of  the  other  countries 
of  Europe.  The  perfection  which  has  been  attained  in 
growing  such  grapes,  the  ready  demand  for  the  fruit 
which  retails  in  all  the  great  markets  of  Europe  at  from 
fifty  cents  to  one  dollar  per  pound,  according  to  the 
season,  is  another  striking  evidence  of  the  prices  which 
may  be  realized  for  carefully  selected  fruit.  It  is  only 
in  counties  having  a  climate  like  that  of  San  Francisco 
that  it  will  ever  be  practical  to  pursue  this  branch  of  the 
industry  successfully.  The  advantage  to  be  derived 
lies  in  the  fact  that  in  cool,  foggy  climates  it  is  possible 
to  regulate  the  temperature  and  have  ripe  grapes  of  the 
highest  quality  when  all  other  grapes  are  off  the  market. 
The  great  strides  that  grape  culture  has  made  in  Cali- 
fornia is  apparent  from  the  following  statistics:  raisin 
output  not  less  than  150,000  tons  annually;  table  grape 


82 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


•jif  >**m  f*  ,  v  , 

•  >^'|'¥^;  si  >•"  ^  ' 
^.ftjJKW*-;*  .;-,^v-- 
r-»'^'  *>  ''w»:' **'•''•' 


-  isr^ 


The  correct  method  of  pruning  Emperor  vines.     These  vines  are  four  years  old.     Note  the  distribution  of  the  spurs 
and  the  canes,  which  will  very  shortly  be  tied  to  the  two  trellis  wires. 


shipments  170,000  tons;  wine  and  brandy  produced 
50,000,000  gallons.  Up  to  a  few  years  ago  there  seemed 
to  be  very  little  chance  for  the  development  of  the  late 
table  industry  but  now  the  method  of  shipping  grapes 
packed  in  kegs  in  redwood  sawdust  has  been  discovered 
through  the  efforts  of  the  Division  of  Pomology  of  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and  so  an- 
other great  field  is  open  for  exploitation.  The  first 
carload  of  grapes  shipped  out  of  California  packed  in 
this  manner  was  forwarded  by  the  writer  in  1912.  The 
work  was  carried  on  under  the  instructions  of  C.  W. 
Mann,  and  under  the  direction  of  A.  V.  Stubenrauch, 
now  deceased,  of  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture.  It  was  only  after  careful  experimental 
work  extending  over  a  number  of  years  that  the  value 
of  sawdust  as  a  preservative  material  was  finally 
evolved.  When  grapes  are  packed  in  sawdust  and 
placed  under  refrigeration  the  temperature  being 
maintained  at  32  degrees  Fahrenheit,  varieties  like  the 
Emperor,  Cornichon,  and  Almeria  will  keep  in  perfect 
condition  for  several  months.  The  shipments  now 
average  five  hundred  carloads  annually.  The  kegs 
hold  thirty-two  pounds  of  grapes  each.  The  great 
possibility  for  late  table  grape  culture  in  California  may 
be  drawn  from  the  fact  that  in  normal  times  we  import 
annually  from  Spain  1,000,000  kegs  of  Almeria  grapes, 
each  containing  forty-five  pounds  of  fruit.  Cork  dust 
which  is  used  for  packing  demonstrates  the  complete 
use  of  a  material  in  some  form  for  a  beneficial  use. 


SITUATION  AND  SOILS 

The  magnitude  of  the  industry  in  California  indicates 
that  the  growing  of  grapes  is  not  confined  to  any  one 
locality.  It  is  very  difficult  for  one  to  realize  unless  he 
has  observed  the  climatic  conditions  of  California  care- 
fully or  fully  appreciates  the  scope  of  this  industry. 
Were  it  not  for  the  variations  in  climate  it  never  would 
have  been  possible  to  engage  in  so  many  branches  of 
viticulture  in  this  state.  It  is  only  in  the  great  interior 
valleys,  where  there  is  very  little  or  no  rain  during  the 
summer  and  fall  months,  that  it  is  practical  to  make 
raisins,  and  this  is  possible  on  account  of  the  clear  sun- 
shiny days  and  the  high  temperatures  which  prevail. 
It  is  in  these  same  valleys  that  the  table  grapes  reach 
their  greatest  perfection.  This  does  not  mean  that 
there  are  not  certain  sections  in  the  Coast  regions  where 
table  grapes  can  not  be  grown.  However,  the  late 
ripening  varieties  are  as  a  whole  better  adapted  to  the 
interior  valleys  than  to  the  Coast  regions.  For  light 
table  wines,  the  Coast  counties  are  found  to  be  better 
adapted  to  the  growing  of  the  finer  types  of  the  wine 
varieties,  while  in  the  interior  valleys  in  many  cases 
the  same  varieties  of  grapes  are  grown,  but  on  account 
of  their  high  percentage  of  sugar  it  is  very  difficult  to 
make  light  wir  es  from  them,  so  instead  they  are  used  for 
making  ports  and  sherries,  and  for  the  manufacture  of 
brandy  for  fortifying  purposes.  The  grape  will' thrive 
in  a  great  variety  of  soils;  in  fact  there  are  few  soils  in 
which  it  will  not  do  well.  The  deeper  and  more  alluvial 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


83 


the  soil  the  better  the  production.  Soils  impregnated 
with  alkali  or  where  the  water  table  is  too  close  to  the 
surface  should  be  avoided. 

LAYING  OUT  A  VINEYARD 

First  establish  your  base  lines.  It  is  best  to  have  this 
done  with  a  transit,  particularly  if  there  are  no  estab- 
lished regular  subdivision  lines  to  work  from.  If  the 
base  lines  are  not  at  right  angles,  the  rows  will  not  be 
straight,  and  nothing  is  more  unsightly.  Add  to  this  the 
difficulty  of  plowing  and  cultivating  and  the  advantages 
of  straight  rows  will  be  readily  understood.  For  planting 
use  a  steel  woven  No.  19  galvanized  wire,  dividing  same 
up  into  sections  as  recommended  under  the  heading  of 
"Methods  of  Planting,"  and  at  equidistant  points  on 
the  chain  a  piece  of  wire  is  wrapped  to  which  markers 


Having  set  the  stakes  along  the  outside  line  at  the 
distance  apart  the  vines  are  to  be  planted,  start  at  the 
same  end  of  the  field  again  and  set  another  line  of  stakes 
parallel  with  the  first  line  and  the  length  of  the  chain 
distant  from  the  outside  line.  Proceed  in  this  manner 
until  the  entire  field  is  laid  out  in  checks.  With  this 
preliminary  work  done,  and  having  exercised  care  in 
the  measurements  to  have  the  base  lines  parallel  and 
the  stakes  in  each  block  opposite  each  other,  no  diffi- 
culty will  be  experienced  when  planting  commences  to 
have  the  vines  line  up. 

DISTANCE  TO  PLANT 

This  always  gives  rise  to  much  discussion,  and  opin- 
ions vary  so  that  the  planter  is  often  in  a  quandry  as  to 
what  course  to  pursue.  The  prevailing  practice  is  to 


A  one-year-old  Muscat  vine  trained  to 
single  cane  and   cut  back  to  twenty- 
four  inches. 


A    three-year-old    Muscat    vine     well 
trained. 


A  two-year-old  Muscat  vine  with 

spurs  properly  distributed  along 

the  cane. 


are  attached  and  soldered  into  place.  It  is  necessary,  of 
course,  to  change  the  markers  to  other  points  for  plant- 
ing at  greater  or  less  distances.  It  is  best  to  have  the 
wire  chain  the  width  of  the  check,  the  last  link  coming 
flush  with  the  stake  indicating  the  roadway.  These 
roads  between  the  checks  should  be  at  intervals  of 
twenty-four  rows  for  a  wine  and  table  vineyard  and 
thirty  rows  for  a  raisin  vineyard.  Start  at  one  corner 
of  the  field  with  the  chain,  which  should  have  three-inch 
rings  at  each  end  for  inserting  the  iron  stakes.  These 
should  be  made  of  one-half  by  two-inch  iron,  two  and 
•one-half  feet  long  and  drawn  down  to  a  point  at  one 
end.  The  stakes  which  are  to  be  used  as  markers  may 
be  split  out  of  redwood,  or  any  other  material,  for  that 
matter,  and  at  least  six  inches  of  one  end  dipped  into  a 
bucket  of  whitewash,  so  that  the  line  of  the  base  rows 
may  be  readily  seen. 


plant  wine  grapes  8x8  feet,  leaving  out  the  twenty- 
fifth  row  for  an  avenue.  For  wine  and  table  grapes  the 
avenues  should  not  be  farther  apart  than  this.  As  it  is 
necessary  to  carry  out  the  grapes  in  lug  boxes  to  the 
avenue,  the  pickers  (if  the  work  of  harvesting  is  done 
by  contract)  demand  more  per  ton  for  the  picking  than 
where  the  checks  are  twenty-four  vines  wide.  For 
types  of  raisin  grapes  which  are  to  be  short  pruned  and 
headed  low  where  the  drying  is  to  be  done  on  trays  in 
the  vineyard,  any  of  the  following  distances  are  satis- 
factory: 8x8,  7x10,  6x12  feet,  always  leaving  the  wide 
rows  east  and  west,  so  the  trays  shall  get  the  full  bene- 
fit of  the  sun's  rays.  In  this  case  the  checks  may  be 
thirty  rows  wide.  For  staked  vines  of  raisin  grapes, 
where  the  drying  is  to  be  carried  on  in  the  vineyard, 
6x12  feet  is  undoubtedly  the  most  economical  distance 
to  plant,  as  picking  is  much  facilitated,  the  trays  get 


84 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A  two-year-old  Muscat  vine  under  the 
old  method. 


the  full  benefit  of  the  sun,  and  the  raisins  cure  quickly, 
which  is  not  the  case  where  vines  are  closer  together. 
Table  grapes  should  not  be  planted  closer  than  8x10 
eet,  with  the  wide  rows  north  and  south.  The  grapes 
then  have  more  exposure  to  the  sun  and  mature  more 
uniformly.  This  rule  applies  more  particularly  to  the 
varieties  which  ripen  rather  late,  like  Cornichon,  Em- 
peror, Gros  Colman,  Black  Morocco,  etc. 

PREPARING  FOR  PLANTING 

All  rootlets,  excepting  those  starting  from  the  base  of 
the  vines,  should  be  cut  off.  Next  shorten  in  all  the 
roots  radiating  from  the  base  of  the  cutting  from  two  to 
three  inches. 

Then  prune  the  top  of  the  vine,  leaving  only  one 
spur  with  from  one  to  three  buds.  The  vines  should  be 
pruned  a  day  or  so  in  advance  of  the  planting,  and  the 
work  should  be  entrusted  to  careful  men.  As  soon  as 
pruned,  the  vines  should  be  heeled  in  and  the  soil 
either  wet  or  tamped  down  to  prevent  the  roots  from 
drying  out.  The  heeling-in  ground  should  be  centrally 
located,  so  that  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  carry  the 
vines  too  long  a  distance  to  the  planters. 

HOW  TO  PLANT 

Each  man  should  be  provided  with  a  bucket  or  five 
gallon  coal-oil  can.  A  small  quantity  of  water  in  the 
bottom  will  keep  the  roots  moist.  Each  bucket  should 
be  filled  with  vines,  and  replenished  from  time  to  time 
with  vines  as  they  are  needed  by  the  planters. 

The  planting  wire  should  be  stretched  across  the  first 
check  to  two  stakes,  which  should  be  directly  opposite 
each  other.  Each  planter  should  have  charge  of  two 
marks  on  the  wire.  As  an  illustration,  figure  on  a  basis 
of  planting  the  vines  eight  feet  apart  each  way  and  leav- 
ing out  every  thirty-first  vine  for  an  avenue.  It  would  be 
necessary  to  have  a  wire  chain  250  feet- long  over  all, 
including  a  two-foot  link  at  each  end  for  the  ring  to 
permit  drawing  the  chain  taut.  To  such  a  chain  it 
would  be  necessary  to  have  seventeen  men,  two  to 
stretch  the  chain  across  the  field  between  the  two  stakes 


A  three-year-old  vine  under  the  methods 

formerly   recommended    with    the    head 

started  from   a   central  point;  no  longer 

advocated. 


set  opposite  each  other  in  the  check  and  fifteen  to  dojthe 
planting.  The  marks  eight  feet  apart  in  the  chain  in- 
dicate where  the  vines  are  to  be  set.  In  planting,  the 
vine  should  be  set  so  that  the  collar  will  be  level  with 
the  top  of  the  ground  when  it  is  settled,  except  with 
grafted  vines,  which  will  be  referred  to  later.  The  soil 
in  the  bottom  of  the  hole  should  be  loosened  up,  and 
that  used  to  fill  in  should  be  top  soil,  the  first  few 
shovels  of  which  should  be  well  tramped  in,  the  top  be- 
ing left  loose.  Having  set  this  line  of  vines  the  chain 
is  carried  to  the  next  two  line  stakes,  and  so  on  until 
the  check  is  planted.  Within  one  week  after  planting 
the  earth  should  be  settled  around  the  vines  either  by 
hauling  water  to  them  or  by  irrigating,  running  the 
water  in  furrows  along  each  row.  This  is  important, 
for  even  with  a  good  field  boss  over  a  crew  of  men,  some 
of  them  will  be  careless,  fail  to  tramp  the  soil  around 
the  roots,  and  unless  a  timely  and  heavy  rain  should 
cause  the  soil  to  settle,  the  vines  will  dry  out  and  die. 

CARE  AND  PRUNING  THE  VINES 
The  training  of  the  vine  should  be  given  careful 
attention  the  first  year  of  its  growth.  In  order  that  the 
plant  may  not  form  a  head  close  to  the  top  of  the  ground 
a  short  stake  allowing  it  to  be  a  foot  above  the  ground, 
should  be  driven  beside  each  vine.  These  stakes  should 
be  one  inch  square  and  two  feet  long,  as  they  should  be 
taken  out  the  first  winter.  Any  cheap  stake,  provided 
it  will  support  the  growth  of  the  vine,  will  answer.  In 
July,  before  the  growth  of  the  canes  has  become  ligni- 
fied,  they  should  be  tied  with  three-  or  four-ply  baling 
rope  to  the  stake,  and  about  one-third  of  the  top  growth 
cut  off.  This  shortening  in  of  the  canes  causes  them  to 
become  stocky,  and  as  a  result  of  the  tying  up  there  are 
a  number  of  straight  shoots,  the  strongest  of  which 
may  be  selected  the  following  winter,  the  others  being 
removed. 

The  most  serviceable  permanent  stakes  are  the  split 
stakes  made  out  of  Coast  redwood.  These  stakes  should 
at  least  be  2x2  inches.  Their  length  will  depend  largely 
on  the  variety  of  grape  to  be  trained  to  the  stake.  For 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


85 


Muscat  vines  and  other  vines  which  do  not  make  long 
•canes  a  three-foot  stake  will  answer.  For  Malaga  and 
stronger  growing  vines  in  its  class  use  a  four-foot  stake, 
and  for  Emperor,  Flame  Tokay,  Cornichon,  Sultana, 
and  Thompson  Seedless  the  stake  should  at  least  be 
six  feet  long. 

In  making  my  recommendations  in  reference  to 
pruning  I  am  going  to  discuss  varieties  on  a  basis  of 
"Standards."  In  other  words,  a  Muscat  and  vines  in 
its  class,  making  short  canes,  will  be  referred  to  as  low 
standards,  meaning  that  the  height  of  the  cane  would 
not  exceed  twenty-four  inches.  The  Malaga  should  be 
termed  as  a  medium  standard,  cane  not  to  exceed 
thirty-two  inches,  and  the  Thompson  Seedless  high 
standard,  cane  not  to  be  longer  than  forty-two 
inches. 

No  difficulty  will  be  encountered  under  ordinary  con- 
ditions in  securing  a  low  standard  cane  the  first  year, 
provided  the  growth  of  the  vine  has  been  tied  up  as 
directed.  If  the  cane  shows  by  its  size  that  it  is  not 
strong  enough  to  be  carried  to  its  maximum  height  in 
the  first  winter  pruning,  it  should  be  cut  off  to  a  point 
where  it  is  sturdy,  and  during  the  growing  season  the 
strongest  shoot  from  it  should  be  selected  and  firmly 
tied  to  the  stake.  In  tying  to  stake  use  nothing  smaller 
than  a  three-ply  baling  rope.  Anything  smaller  than 
this,  should  the  cane  grow  vigorously,  will  cut  it  in  two. 
On  low  and  medium  standards  rub  all  the  laterals  off, 
starting  not  closer  than  ten  inches  from  the  surface  of 
the  ground,  and  on  the  others  anything  below  fourteen 
inches  should  be  rubbed  off.  It  is  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance to  have  the  stem  of  the  vine  tied  firmly  to  the 
stake  to  have  it  as  straight  as  possible,  for  it  will  ulti- 
mately form  the  body  of  the  vine.  In  the  second  winter 
when  pruning  the  low  standard,  leave  at  least  four 
spurs,  getting  them  as  evenly  distributed  as  possible, 
and  be  sure  to  have  one  at  the  tip  end  of  the  vine.  The 
medium  standard  should  have  at  least  six  and  the  high 
vine  not  less  than  eight.  None  of  these  spurs  should 
exceed  five  inches  in  length.  A  light  crop  of  grapes  may 
be  expected  from  the  vines  in  the  second  year  by  this 
method  of  handling.  In  the  third  winter  each  one  of 
these  spurs  will  have  several  canes,  and  in  the  case  of 
the  low  and  medium  standard  vines  which  ordinarily 
would  not  be  trellised,  two  spurs  with  not  more  than 
three  eyes  in  each  should  be  allowed  to  remain.  In 
succeeding  years  these  eyes  from  the  original  stock  may 
be  increased,  depending  on  the  growth  of  the  vine.  In 
the  third  year  the  trellising  of  high  standard  should 
commence;  when  this  is  done  one  cane  and  one  short 
spur  with  three  eyes  or  buds  should  be  allowed  to  grow 
from  the  stock  of  the  preceding  year.  The  object  of 
this  is  to  furnish  wood  for  renewing  the  cane  in  the 
fourth  year,  for  the  first  one  will  be  cut  off  close  to  the 
original  stock.  This  method  permits  of  the  renewal  of 
the  bearing  wood  of  the  vine  annually  and  promotes  its 
vigor.  There  are  several  advantages  in  this  method  of 
pruning:  One  is  that  the  vines  eventually  become  self- 
supporting,  making  an  immense  saving  in  stakes,  when 
after  a  number  of  years  they  must  be  renewed.  There 
is  a  tendency  on  the  part  of  all  vines  as  they  grow  old  to 
have  large  spurs  die.  When  the  vines  are  trimmed  to  a 


A  two-year-old  Emperor 
vine,    properly    trained. 


An  eight-year-old  Emperor  vine 

with   spurs   well   distributed 

along  the  body  of  the  vine. 


head — say  twelve  inches  from  the  ground — it  very  fre- 
quently happens  that  decay  sets  in  where  the  heavy 
saw  cuts  are  made  in  removing  the  old  spurs,  and  the 
vine  either  dies  prematurely  or  there  is  such  a  slow  re- 
newal of  new  wood  that  it  becomes  unprofitable. 

For  trellising,  use  a  twelve-gauge  wire  and  either 
staple  it  to  the  stakes,  using  a  medium  sized  staple,  or 
bore  holes  through  the  stakes  and  pass  the  wire  through. 
To  prevent  the  wires  from  becoming  slack  the  end 
stakes  in  each  row  are  braced,  the  braces  being  of 
sufficient  length  to  reach  from  the  top  of  the  inside 
stake  to  the  base  of  stake  on  the  next  row.  At  three 
years  old  a  trellised  vine  should  not  have  more  than 
four  canes.  This  may  in  later  years  be  increased,  but 
eight  should  be  the  outside  limit. 

A  great  saving  can  be  made  in  tying  up  vines  or 
canes,  for  that  matter,  to  the  stakes  by  stripping  off  the 
leaves  from  the  California  fan  palm  and  using  these 
strips  in  place  of  rope.  These  palm-leaf  strips  are 
not  only  very  strong  but  are  also  very  durable.  The 
leaves  should  be  cut  two  weeks  in  advance  of  using 
and  exposed  to  the  weather  to  cure  before  tearing  them 
into  strips. 

In  trellising,  the  cultivation  of  the  vineyard  is  some- 
what more  expensive,  as  it  only  permits  working  the 
rows  one  way,  so  that  the  center  between  the  rows  must 
be  worked  out  with  a  horse  hoe.  It  has  been  found 
that  by  trellising,  the  harvesting  of  the  crop  is  facili- 
tated, the  bunches  are  more  evenly  distributed,  the 
vines  produce  larger  crops  and  in  addition  to  this  there 
seems  to  be  less  danger  from  damage  by  early  spring 
frosts. 


86 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


A   three-year-old    Thompson    Seedless    vineyard,    trellised, 
showing  pruned  and  unpruned  vines. 


RESISTANT  VINES 

The  ravages  of  the  phylloxera  in  the  grape  regions  of 
France  and  the  practical  extermination  of  the  French 
vineyards  through  this  dreaded  pest  are  too  well  known 
to  require  repetition  here.  Today  France  is  producing 
more  wine  than  she  did  in  her  palmiest  days,  prior  to  the 
time  the  pest  wras  introduced.  This  wonderful  change 
has  been  brought  about  by  the  grafting  of  the  table, 
raisin  and  wine  varieties,  all  of  which  are  natives  of 
Europe  belonging  to  the  Viiis  Vinifera  class,  and  none 
of  which,  no  matter  how  strong  they  are,  but  will  finally 
perish  when  attacked  by  the  phylloxera. 

The  resistant  sorts  were  originally  wild  American 
grapes,  natives  of  the  Mississippi  valley.  These  were 
taken  in  hand  by  the  French  viticulturists,  improved  by 
hybridization  and  selection,  until  today  a  large  number 
of  sorts  adapted  to  a  variety  of  soils  and  locations  have 
come  into  general  use. 

The  destruction  of  Vinifera  vines  is  due  to  the  roots 
rotting  whenever  the  insect  makes  a  puncture,  causing 
the  vine  to  perish  in  time.  In  the  roots  of  the  resist- 
ants,  although  subject  to  these  attacks,  the  punctures 
do  not  extend  deeper  than  the  bark  of  the  rootlets,  and 
as  this  is  sloughed  off  each  year,  the  roots  are  left  as 
healthy  as  before.  The  grapes  of  the  resistants  are 
worthless;  they  simply  serve  as  a  stock  for  the  more 
valuable  foreign  varieties  of  wine,  table  and  raisin  grapes, 
all  of  which  succumb  to  the  attacks  of  the  phylloxera  on 
their  own  roots.  The  cultural  directions  already  given 
for  planting  vines  on  their  own  roots  may  be  applied 
to  the  resistants  in  so  far  as  preparing  the  vines  for 
planting.  In  planting  the  rootings  the  vines  should  be 
set  so  the  union  of  the  stock  is  at  least  an  inch  above 
ground.  As  soon  as  the  vine  is  planted,  cover  it  with 
soil,  leaving  only  the  top  bud  exposed.  When  the 
vines  have  a  good  strong  growth,  clear  the  soil  away 


from  them  and  cut  off  any  roots  which  may  be  started 
from  the  scion.  This  is  one  of  the  important  points  in 
bringing  a  resistant  vineyard  into  bearing,  for  if  these 
roots  are  not  cut  off  the  resistant  roots  dwindle  away 
and  the  vine  reverts  back  to  its  own  root.  Suckers 
starting  from  the  resistant  cutting  should  also  be 
removed. 

It  is  necessary  to  follow  up  this  root  pruning  for  at 
least  five  years  after  the  vineyard  is  planted,  for  the 
scion  will  invariably  start  out  new  roots  if  the  soil  from 
plowing  gets  banked  up  against  it.  In  later  years,  after 
the  wood  of  the  vine  becomes  well  hardened  up,  there 
is  very  little  danger  of  the  scion  making  roots.  The 
same  recommendations  for  training  and  pruning  vines 
on  their  own  roots  may  be  followed  with  grafted  vines. 

IRRIGATION  AND  CULTIVATION 

There  are  two  essentials  which  go  hand  in  hand  not 
only  in  the  great  valleys  of  California  but  in  many  other 
parts  of  the  state  where  the  annual  rainfall  is  not 
sufficient  to  maintain  an  active  growth  in  the  vine 
— cultivation  and  irrigation.  Cultivation  is  very 
rarely  carried  on  to  an  excess  but  irrigation  is,  and 
it  frequently  results  in  much  harm  to  table  grapes  used 
for  shipping  purposes.  The  berries  instead  of  being 
firm  and  plump  become  watery  and  as  a  result  do  not 
carry  well.  Even  in  the  first  year  it  is  a  mistake  to- 
irrigate  vines  too  often.  After  the  vines  are  set  it  is 
important  to  water  them  and  subsequently  during  the 
growing  season  a  furrow  should  be  plowed  out  on  each 
side  of  the  row  and  about  a  foot  from  the  vines,  to  carry 
the  water  used  for  irrigating.  As  soon  as  it  has  soaked 
away  and  before  the  ground  gets  too  hard,  cultivate 
thoroughly  and  loosen  up  the  soil  around  each  vine 
with  a  hoe.  At  the  very  least  calculation  the  number  of 
irrigations  during  the  summer  and  early  fall  months 
should  not  exceed  three.  If  the  vines  are  making  a 
strong  growth  and  this  condition  can  be  maintained  in 
them  by  cultivating,  by  all  means  depend  on  this  to 
promote  their  vigor  and  a  strong  root  system  rather 
than  to  attempt  to  stimulate  with  too  much  water. 
'The  less  surface  roots  there  are  and  the  deeper  the  roots 
from  the  base  of  the  vines  go  into  the  ground,  the  longer 
lived  will  be  the  vineyard,  and  the  response  in  produc- 
tion will  be  all  the  greater,  due  to  the  care  given  the 
vine  when  it  was  first  planted.  After  the  vineyard 
comes  into  bearing  a  thorough  irrigation,  plowing  out 
a  ditch  in  the  center  of  the  row  and  filling  it  with  water, 
is  very  beneficial,  providing  this  application  of  water  is 
given  on  or  before  the  month  of  June.  Instances  may 
arise  where  it  may  be  necessary  to  irrigate  again  at  a 
later  date.  This  is  a  matter  which  must  be  determined 
by  the  grower  himself  from  his  observations  of  the  gen- 
eral growth  and  the  healthfulness  of  the  vines.  Much 
interest  has  been  taken  within  the  last  few  years  in 
winter  irrigation.  After  the  vines  have  become  dor- 
mant there  is  no  question  but  that  the  applying  of  water 
in  the  latter  part  of  November,  or  any  time  in  Decem- 
ber, has  a  very  stimulating  effect  on  the  vine  when  it 
starts  to  grow  in  the  spring,  and  in  addition  to  this  it 
has  the  tendency  to  stimulate  the  growth  of  vegetation, 
all  of  which  adds  to  the  fertility  of  the  soil  when  it  is 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


87 


plowed  during  the  spring.  After  the  vineyard  is 
pruned  it  should  be  plowed  not  less  than  six  inches 
deep.  Immediately  after  plowing  the  soil  should 
be  hoed  away  from  the  vines,  and  all  suckers 
should  be  cut  off  close  to  them.  The  basin  made  in 
hoeing  should  not  be  filled,  for  among  the  many  other 
benefits  secured,  the  eggs  and  larvae  of  insect  pests 
collecting  around  the  vine  are  destroyed  by  exposure. 
The  next  step  is  cultivating,  or  if  the  ground  is  cloddy  it 
is  far  better  to  use  either  a  disc  or  harrow  first  to  break 
up  the  clods,  and  then  follow  this  up  with  cultivation. 
The  cultivating  should  be  continued  as  long  as  the. 
shoots  will  not  be  broken  off  by  the  team  and  imple- 
ment passing  through  the  rows. 

FERTILIZING 

Very  little  attention  has  been  given  to  the 
fertilizing  of  vineyards.  Anyone  having  given  this 
subject  any  thought  must  be  convinced  that 
wood  and  fruit  can  not  be  taken  from  the  vines 
year  after  year  without  adding  something  to  the 
soil  to  maintain  its  fertility.  The  problem  of  fertilizing 
or  of  growing  cover  crops  in  a  vineyard  should  be  given 
careful  attention.  The  expense  of  carrying  on  this  work 
is  so  heavy  and  goes  so  deeply  into  the  vineyardist's 
pocketbook  that  he  fights  shy  of  this  problem  quite 
frequently  until  it  is  too  late.  After  many  years  of 
experimental  work  in  my  own  vineyards,  consisting  of 
table,  raisin  and  wine  grapes,  using  commercial  fer- 
tilizer, stable  manure,  and  a  variety  of  cover  crops,  I 
have  come,  to  the  conclusion  that  in  both  the  use  of 
manure  and  the  use  of  commercial  fertilizer  the  best 
pYaotice  was  to  make  the  applications  where  the  crop 
produced  was  not  up  to  the  standard  it  should  be.  A 
record  was  kept  of  the  blocks  in  the  vineyard  where  the 
vines  were  not  growing  well  and  where  the  crop  was 
deficient,  and  liberal  applications  of  barnyard  manure 
and  a  complete  fertilizer  were  made  to  better  the  condi- 
tion of  the  vines.  In. applying  manure  it  should  be 
well  decomposed,  if  obtainable  in  this  condition,  and  not 
less  than*  ten  tons  to  the  acre  should  be  put  on.  If 
possible  this  should  be  put  on  in  December  and  the 
commercial  fertilizer  in  the  latter  part  of  January,  or  in 
February  using  not  less  than  five  hundred  pounds  to 
the  acre,  although  double  this  quantity  is  better. 
Cover  crops  have  as  a  rule  been  very  unsatisfactory. 
The  immense  benefits  to  be  derived  from  the  use  of 
cover  crops  have  been  exploited  to  the  limit.  I  have 
been  one  of  the  many  practical  growers  who  have 
paid  dearly  for  their  experience,  not  only  using  them 
in  vineyards  but  in  orange  orchards  as  well.  I  have 
tried  all  of  them — fenugreek,  vetch,  Canadian  field 
p&as,  rye  and  melilotus.  The  first  three  are  failures 
in  the  interior  valleys  because  it-  is  impossible  to  plant 
them  in  the  vineyards  in  October  when  the  harvesting 
of  the  crop  is  going  on,  and  secondly  because  it  is  out  of 
the  question  to  apply  any  water  at  that  time;  thirdly, 
the  cool,  sharp  air  which  is  so  apparent  during  the  late 
fall  and  winter  months,  entirely  at  variance  with  the 
climatic  conditions  in  the  counties  south  of  the  Te- 
hachapi,  is  not  conducive  to  the  growth  of  any  of  these 
crops  unless  it  is  Melilotus.  In  the  counties  referred 


A  Thompson  Seedless  vine  with  numerous  stems. 
Abominable  method  of  pruning. 


to  where  the  air  is  warm  and  where  the  water  is  carried 
in  furrows  made  after  the  cover  crop  is  planted  these 
crops  do  well.  However,  there  is  one  very  important 
point  which  should  not  be  lost  sight  of  and  that  is  to 
turn  under  a  cover  crop  before  it  begins  to  draw  on  the 
soil  and  sap,  the  strength  of  the  trees.  Time  and  time 
again  I  have  seen  citrus  orchards  drained  of  their 
vitality  to  such  an  extent  by  allowing  cover  crops  to 
remain  in  the  ground  too  late  in  the  season  that  it  took 
several  years  for  the  orchard  to  get  back  to  its  normal 
condition  and  then  only  by  very  careful  attention 
through  fertilizing  and  irrigating.  It  is  a  safe  rule  to 
follow  to  plow  all  cover  crops  under  on  or  before  March. 
The  melilotus  is  the  most  satisfactory  crop  in  the  in- 
terior valleys,  but  to  even  get  results  from  it  which  are 
worth  while  the  planting  of  the  seed  should  be  done  in 
October.  It  has  one  advantage  over  the  other  crops 
and  that  is  that  it  grows  eveii  in  cold  weather  providing 
there  is  moisture  in  the  ground.  The  only  advantage 
that  rye  has  is  that  it  may  be  sown  after  the  first  rains, 
and  as  it  makes  a  very  rapid  growth  it  adds  humus  to 
the  soil.  Such  lands  as  have  not  been  planted  to  cover 
crops  before  should  have  the  seed  inoculated  with 
nitrogen-bearing  bacterial  germs  before  planting. 

GATHERING  FOR  SHIPPING 

California  is  now  and  will  continue  to  be  the  main 
source  of  supply  for  table  grapes  both  for  consumption 
in  the  United  States  and  for  export.  The  magnitude  of 
the  industry  is  a  sufficient  indication  of  its  stability. 
The  readiness  on  the  part  of  the  consumer  to  pay  high 


88 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


89 


prices  for  good  fruit  verifies  fully  the  profits  to  be  real- 
ized by  the  grower  who  devotes  proper  attention  to  the 
care  of  his  vineyard  and  in  the  gathering  of  the  fruit. 
Recent  laws  which  have  been  enacted  not  only  regulate 
the  sugar  content  which  table  grapes  must  have,  which 
vary  from  seventeen  per  cent  to  nineteen  per  cent,  de- 
pending on  the  variety,  but  is  also  going  to  do  much 
toward  standardizing  the  industry.    Utter  demoraliza- 
tion was  facing  table-grape  industry,  due  to  the  avari- 
ciousness  of  unscrupulous  shippers,  who  lost  sight  of  the 
future  of  this  business  and  only  considered  their  imme- 
diate gains,  entirely  disregarding  in  many  instances  the 
amount  of  sugar  the  fruit  contained  as  well  as  the 
quality  of  the  grapes  they  were  shipping.     In  picking 
table  grapes  the  bunches  should  be  cut  off  with  a  knife 
or  shears  and  each  bunch  should  be  carefully  laid  in  the 
picking  box  stem  up.     It  is  a  good  plan  to  cut  off 
branches  from  the  vines  and  place  them  in  the  boxes 
before  laying  in  the  grapes.     Never  have  the  bunches 
over  one  layer  deep.     Be  sure  to  cover  the  top  box 
when  taking  to  the  roadway  in  the  vineyard  with 
branches  to  prevent  the  bunches  from  being  exposed 
to  the  sun.     The  wagon  on  which  the  lug  boxes  are 
hauled  should  be  equipped  with  springs.     The  most 
satisfactory  lug  box  for  table  grapes  is  5K  inches  deep, 
17  inches  wide  inside  measurement,  and  24  inches  long 
outside.    Never  pick  grapes  when  they  are  wet  or  cov- 
ered with  dew  except  for  nearby  markets.    The  grapes 
are  packed  in  veneer  baskets  four  to  the  crate.    All  de- 
fective berries  are  cut  out  and  bunches  which  are  too 
compact  have  the  berries  removed  to  prevent  bruising 
when  packing  in  the  baskets.    A  good  part  of  the  late 
table  grapes,  providing  the  berries  are  firm,  are  shipped 
in  kegs  in  redwood  sawdust.    The  first  essential  to  suc- 
cess by  this  method  of  packing  is  to  have  the  dust  ab- 
solutely dry.     Logs  are  especially  cut  for  the  purpose 
of  manufacturing  this  dust,  the  grains  of  which  must 
be  coarse  in  order  to  secure  the  best  results  in  keeping 
the  grapes.    The  size  of  the  kegs  and  drums  (the  latter 
being  made  out  of  veneer  lumber)  have  been  standard- 
ized— thirty-two  pounds  of  grapes  are  packed  to  the  keg. 
In  packing  the  grapes  an  inch  of  dust  is  placed  in  the 
bottom  of  the  package,  then  several  layers  of  grapes 
followed  by  dust  which  is  sifted  through  them  by  the 
shaking  of  the  keg  and  striking  its  sides  in  order  to 
make  the  sawdust  fill  up  every  interstice.     In  placing 
the  kegs  in  the  refrigerator  cars  they  are  loaded  so  as 
to  permit  of  free  circulation  of  air.     After  they  are 
received  at  their  destination,  if  placed  in  a  temperature 
of  thirty-two  degrees  Fahrenheit  no  difficulty  is  en- 
countered in  keeping  them  for  several  months  in  the 
very  best  of  condition.     Thus  far  the  varieties  which 
Lave  been  found  the  best  adapted  to  this  method  of 
packing  are  the  Emperor,  Almeria,  and  Cornichon. 

MAKING  RAISINS 

They  are  sun  dried.  Bearing  in  mind  that  there  are 
one  million  tons  of  fresh  grapes  made  into  raisins  an- 
nually in  California  some  idea  is  derived  of  the  benefit 
of  the  sun  during  the  drying  period  in  the  great  valleys 
of  California.  There  are  several  methods  employed  in 
.making  raisins  and  the  following  terms  are  applied  to 


them:  Naturals,  Oil  Bleached,  and  Sulphur  Bleached. 
As  these  methods  have  a  rather  important  bearing  on 
the  industry  I  deem  it  advisable  to  give  information  in 
detail  on  the  several  drying  processes  employed. 

NATURALS 

Wooden  trays  holding  according  to  size  from  twenty- 
two  to  twenty-nine  pounds  of  grapes  are  hauled  to  the 
roadways  in  the  vineyard.  The  gcapes  are  picked 
directly  from  the  vines  on  to  the  trays,  which  are  placed 
in  every  other  row.  In  order  to  promote  more  rapid 
drying  of  the  grapes  it  is  customary  to  throw  the  soil 
up  against  the  vines  and  run  a  smoother  over  this.  The 
trays  should  slope  to  the  south  to  receive  the  full  bene- 
fit of  the  sun's  rays.  In  picking,  the  grapes  are  placed 
on  the  side  of  the  tray  which  is  cleated.  To  make  first- 
class  raisins  the  grape  should  have  not  less  than  twenty- 
four  per  cent  sugar.  Within  a  week  or  ten  days'  expo- 
sure the  surface  of  the  grapes  exposed  to  the  sun 
will  be  browned  and  wrinkled  and  when  they  reach  this 
point  they  should  be  turned  on  to  another  tray.  This 
is  done  by  placing  the  uncleated  side  of  a  tray  over  the 
one  on  which  the  raisins  have  been  drying.  By  a  dex- 
terous movement  of  the  hands,  which  is  readily  ac- 
quired with  a  little  experience,  the  raisins  are  turned 
on  to  the  other  tray.  It  takes  from  two  to  three  weeks 
to  complete  the  drying  in  the  sun,  depending  on  the 
weather  conditions.  While  the  raisins  are  still  soft  the 
trays  are  stacked  and  the  drying  from  this  point  on  pro- 
ceeds in  the  stack.  Careful  attention  should  be  given 
not  to  allow  the  grapes  to  remain  exposed  to  the  sun 
too  long,  for  this  not  only  toughens  them  but  causes 
quite  a  loss  in  weight,  thus  cutting  heavily  into  the 
grower's  pocketbook.  They  remain  on  the  trays  until 
they  reach  a  point  where,  when  taking  them  between 
the  hands  and  pressing  them,  no  juice  is  expressed  from 
the  individual  berries  and  when  they  are  dropped  they 
fall  apart  readily. 

OIL  BLEACHED 

The  raisins  instead  of  being  dark  when  handled  in 
this  manner  present  a  dark  coppery  hue.  It  is  used 
more  for  the  purpose  of  hastening  drying  than  for  any 
other  reason.  There  is,  however,  a  marked  change  in 
the  flavor  of  the  raisins,  which  is  very  much  appre- 
ciated by  a  great  many  consumers.  In  order  to  carry 
out  this  work  it  is  necessary  to  have  quite  an  equip- 
ment. The  grapes  are  all  hauled  to  the  drying  ground, 
which  should  be  an  open  space  centrally  located  in  the 
vineyard — a  piece  of  ground  planted  to  alfalfa  serving 
the  purpose  better  than  anything  else.  The  solution 
in  which  the  grapes  are  dipped  has  quite  an  important 
bearing  on  the  resultant  product.  This  is  prepared  as 
follows:  take  eight  pounds  of  caustic  soda,  one  gallon 
of  olive  oil,  three  gallons  of  water.  Place  in  a  heavy 
iron  kettle  and  boil  slowly  for  three  hours,  adding 
water  occasionally  during  the  course  of  cooking.  Then 
take  the  emulsion  and  place  in  another  kettle  adding 
enough  water  to  make  five  gallons  in  all.  Boil  this 
slowly  for  about  an  hour,  or  until  it  becomes  a  thick 
jelly.  The  solubility  of  the  emulsion  is  determined  by 
taking  a  spoonful  of  the  jelly  and  placing  it  in  cold 


90 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Sulphur  houses.     The  car  in  the  foreground  is  the  tray  transfer  car  for  hauling  the  trays  from  the  fruit  shed  to 

the  sulphur  houses. 


water.  If  it  dissolves  readily  and  without  making  suds 
it  is  ready  for  use.  For  each  one  hundred  gallons  of 
water  use  four  pounds  of  caustic  soda  and  a  quart  of  the 
emulsion.  The  dipping  tank,  which  should  be  con- 
structed out  of  galvanized  iron,  should  hold  not  less 
than  two  hundred  gallons  of  the  solution  and  this  should 
be  maintained  at  a  temperature  of  200  to  208  degrees 
Fahrenheit  by  either  placing  steam  pipes  in  the  bottom 
of  the  tank  or  by  having  a  fire  under  the  tank  to  heat 
the  water.  The  grapes  when  processed  in  this  manner 
should  not  have  less  than  twenty-two  degrees  sugar  con- 
tent by  a  saccharometer.  They  are  immersed  for  a  period 
of  fifteen  seconds.  This  may  be  varied  according  to  the 
way  the  skins  cut.  The  creases  in  the  skin  of  the  ber- 
ries when  the  bunches  are  exposed  to  the  air  is  an  indi- 
cation that  the  dip  is  sufficient.  After  the  grapes  are 
dipped  in  the  solution  they  are  immersed  in  a  tank 
holding  cold  water  (which  is  changed  frequently)  to  free 
them  from  the  lye  solution. 

To  handle  this  quantity  of  grapes  expeditiously  it  is 
necessary  to  have  the  following  equipment:  first  of  all 
there  should  be  a  shed  or  building  to  house  the  equip- 
ment as  well  as  for  the  men  engaged  in  the  dipping.  A 
revolving  crane  having  a  shallow  tray  made  of  heavy 
galvanized  wire  mesh  is  attached  to  the  arm  of  the 
crane.  A  lever  bolted  to  the  upright  post  raises  and 
lowers  the  tray  as  it  is  moved  from  the  receiving 
station,  then  to  the  tank  holding  the  solution.  From 
there  it  goes  to  the  rinsing  tank,  and  finally  to  the  sta- 
tion where  the  trays  are  lined  up  to  receive  the  pro- 
cessed grapes.  The  trays  are  then  taken  to  the  drying 
yard  on  trucks  running  on  tracks.  All  discolored  grapes 
and  grapes  which  are  badly  mildewed,  or  which  are 


partially  dried,  having  a  dark  appearance,  should  not 
be  dipped.  This  is  particularly  important  when  mak- 
ing the  sulphur-bleached  raisins.  The  time  of  exposure 
of  grapes  treated  in  this  manner  is  less  by  half  than 
those  which  are  not  processed. 

SULPHUR  BLEACHED 

This  method  has  been  used  more  for  processing  the 
Thompson  Seedless  grapes  than  for  any  other  variety. 
The  demand  for  it  arose  from  the  endeavor  of  the  Cali- 
fornia growers  to  produce  a  raisin  which  would  compete 
with  the  processed  Sultanina  Blanche  from  Asia  Minor. 
This  is  the  correct  name  for  the  Thompson  Seedless .  The 
processing  is  the  same  as  for  the  preceding,  except  in 
this  case  they  are  exposed  to  the  fumes  of  sulphur  for 
four  hours.  The  trays  are  then  spread  out  and  exposed 
to  the  sun  on  the  drying  yard  for  about  the  same 
period,  when  they  are  stacked,  and  they  remain  in 
this  stack,  the  air  circulating  through  them  causing 
the  desiccating  of  the  fruit.  Before  transferring 
the  raisins  to  the  sweat  boxes  they  are  separated 
into  three  grades.  The  first  has  a  uniform  light 
straw  color;  the  second  is  not  quite  so  even  in 
color;  and  the  third  grade  consists  of  imperfect 
berries  and  those  which  are  more  or  less  discolored. 
With  a  temperature  ranging  around  one  hundred  degrees 
in  the  shade  during  the  drying  period  this  type  of  raisin 
is  ready  for  the  sweat  box  within  fourteen  days.  The 
raisins  are  beautiful  to  look  at  but  when  eaten  they 
have  a  decided  taste  of  sulphur  which  militates  against 
them  as  an  article  of  food.  In  spite  of  all  this  there  is  a 
heavy  demand  for  this  class  of  goods  and  they  sell  for 
a  higher  price  in  the  market  than  any  other  raisins. 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


91 


The  frame  structure  used  for  drying  raisins  unaer  the  new  process,  Dy  means  of  which  a  great  saving  is  made  in 
the  weight  of  grapes,  used  to  produce  a  pound  of  raisins.    This  process  has  been  patented  but  will  not  be  enforced. 


NEW  METHOD  OF  HANDLING  RAISIN 
GRAPES 

For  a  number  of  years  I  have  been  carrying  on  a 
series  of  experiments  for  the  purpose  of  producing  not 
only  a  high  quality  raisin  with  a  thinner  skin  but  in 
addition  to  this  to  evolve  a  process  by  means  of  which 
it  would  take  a  lesser  quantity  of  grapes  to  produce  a 
pound  of  raisins.  After  carrying  on  the  experiments  in 
a  small  way  I  finally  concluded  to  process  several  tons, 
with  the  most  satisfactory  results,  both  in  the  quality 
of  the  raisin  and  in  the  reduction  of  the  quantity  of 
grapes  necessary  to  produce  a  high-class  raisin.  The 
method  of  processing  is  the  same  as  for  making  an  Oil- 
Bleached  with  the  exception  that  it  is  necessary  when 
dipping  the  grapes  to  cut  the  skins  in  such  a  manner  that 
they  will  show  decided  creases,  otherwise  they  do  not 
dry'as  readily  nor  do  the  raisins  have  a  uniform  color. 
The  trays  on  which  the  grapes  are  placed  after  they 
come  from  the  dipper  are  made  of  three-inch  mesh 
poultry  netting.  In  order  to  prevent  the  berries  from 
falling  through  this  tray  while  they  are  being  trans- 
ferred to  the  drying  yard  it  is  necessary  to  have  under- 
neath each  wire  tray  the  standard  wooden  tray  to  catch 
all  the  berries  which  may  shell  off  of  the  bunches.  The 
trays  used  for  this  purpose  should  be  three  feet  wide 
and  six  feet  long.  Instead  of  having  the  raisins  spread 
out  on  the  ground,  with  this  method  the  wire  trays  are 
placed  on  racks  about  twelve  inches  apart  in  a  structure 
built  of  rough  lumber  and  having  a  covering  made  out 


of  trays  to  prevent  the  sun  from  coming  in  contact  with 
the  raisins  while  they  are  being  dried.  The  shed  should 
run  east  and  west  and  should  be  shaded  on  the  south 
side  with  burlap,  otherwise  the  raisins  exposed  to  the 
afternoon  sun  take  on  a  decided  red  tinge.  The  raisins 
processed  and  dried  in  this  manner  have  a  greenish- 
yellowish  tinge,  and  a  decidedly  attractive  flavor.  The 
skin  is  very  tender  and  one  point  above  everything  else 
which  will  appeal  to  the  grower  is  the  fact  that  it  does 
not  take  more  than  three  and  a  half  pounds  of  grapes 
to  produce  one  pound  of  raisins.  With  a  temperature  of 
one  hundred  degrees  in  the  shade  the  time  of  drying  does 
not  exceed  fourteen  days.  The  drying  is  accomplished 
entirely  by  the  circulation  of  air  through  the  shed. 
The  bunches  hang  through  the  wire  mesh,  eliminating 
all  danger  of  fermentation  or  discoloration  because  of 
their  exposure  to  the  air.  To  carry  this  process  out  on 
the  ordinary  trays  is  simply  out  of  the  question  because 
the  grapes  instead  of  drying  would  ferment.  Expert 
raisin  men  who  have  sampled  the  raisins  produced  by 
this  method  have  been  enthusiastic  in  their  praises  of 
them.  The  process  has  been  used  more  with  Thompson 
Seedless  than  with  any  other  variety,  although  experi- 
ments have  been  made  with  Muscats,  and  there  is  no 
reason  why  it  can  not  be  employed  with  this  variety  of 
grape  as  well,  because  as  far  as  flavor  is  concerned  the 
raisin  has  everything  in  its  favor.  It  has  a  translucent 
color,  and,  like  the  Thompson  Seedless,  the  loss  of 
weight  in  drying  is  very  materially  reduced. 


92 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  OF  TABLE  GRAPES 

Almeria,  Cornichon,  Black  Morocco,  Black  Ferrera, 
Black  Hamburg,  Dattier  de  Beyrouth,  Emperor,  Flame 
Tokay,  Gros  Colman,  Malaga,  Marayille  de  Malaga. 

COLLECTION  OF  TABLE  GRAPES  NAMED  IN 

THEIR  ORDER  OF  RIPENING 

July 

Joannenc  or  Lignan,  Chasselas  de  Fontainebleau 
(White  Sweetwater). 

August 

Chasselas  Ciotat,  Black  Monukka,  Thompson  Seed- 
less, Pink  Thompson  Seedless  (Sultania  Rosea),  Roed- 
ing's  Improved  Thompson  Seedless,  Buckland  Sweet- 
water,  Assouad  Zeine,  Malaga. 

September 

Angulato,  Dattier  de  Beyrouth,  Black  Hamburg,  Gros 
Guilliaume,  Flame  Tokay,  Golden  Champion,  Black 
Malvoise,  Rose  of  Peru,  Sabal  Kanski,  Gradiska, 
Damas  Rose,  Black  Ferrera. 

October 

Maraville  de  Malaga,  Black  Cornichon,  Emperor, 
Gros  Colman,  Olivette  Blanche,  Black  Morocco, 
Olivette  de  Vendemain,  Ohanes  d'Almeria. 


November 


Dronkane. 


AMERICAN  VARIETIES  OF  TABLE  GRAPES 
WHICH  THRIVE  IN  CALIFORNIA 

Agawam,  Catawba,  Concord,  Isabella,  Moore's 
Early,  Niagara,  Pierce  or  Isabella  Regia,  Worden, 
Campbell's  Early. 

RAISIN  GRAPES  NAMED  IN  ORDER  OF  THEIR 

RIPENING 

Zante  Currant  or  Black  Corinth,  White  Corinth, 
Thompson  Seedless,  Sultania  Rosea,  Sultana,  Muscat. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  OF  WINE  GRAPES 
Alicante  Bouschet,  Aramon,  Black  Malvoise,  Burger, 
Carignan,    Feher    Zagos,    Grenache,    Mission,    Petit 
Syrah,  Zinfandel. 

VARIETIES  OF  RESISTANT  GRAPES  ADAPTABLE 
TO  CALIFORNIA  SOILS 

Aramon  X  Rupestris  Ganzin  No.  1,  Berlandieri  X 
Riparia,  Mourvedre  X  Rupestris  1202,  Riparia  X 
Rupestris  3306,  Riparia  X  Rupestris  3309,  Riparia  X 
Rupestris  101 14,  Riparia  X  Cordifolia  Rupestris  106 8, 
Rupestris  St.  George,  Solonis  X  Raparia  1616. 

The  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  and 
the  University  of  California  are  making  careful  observa- 
tions as  to  the  adaptability  of  the  many  varieties  of 
resistants  to  California  soils  and  the  affinity  of  the 
vinifera  varieties  to  them  when  grafted.  Determina- 
tion as  to  their  bearing  qualities  and  many  other 
details  which  will  be  of  great  benefit  to  the  practical 
grower  are  being  worked  out  in  the  experimental 
stations. 


The  Himalaya  Blackberry  produces  a  succession   of  crops 
all  summer. 


THE  SMALL  FRUITS 

This  term  usually  applies  to  the  berry  family:  black- 
berries, currants,  gooseberries,  raspberries,  strawberries. 
The  whole  Pacific  slope,  wherever  fruit  soils  and  suffi- 
cient moisture  prevail,  is  adapted  to  their  successful 
culture.  It  is  practical  in  Oregon  and  Washington  to 
grow  the  small  fruits  with  little  or  no  irrigation.  This 
is  largely  due  to  the  rains  which  occur  so  frequently 
there  during  the  entire  summer.  In  California  even  in 
the  coast  counties,  where  they  have  fog  and  where  dur- 
ing the  height  of  the  summer  season  it  very  rarely 
becomes  warm,  irrigation  nevertheless  is  an  essential 
requisite  toward  successful  berry  culture.  All  varieties 
of  berries  luxuriate  under  the  favorable  climatic  condi- 
tions which  exist  in  the  coastal  counties  from  San  Luis 
Obispo  northward.  The  quality  and  size  of  the  berries 
which  are  practically  out  of  season  in  the  midsummer 
months  in  the  interior  valleys  are  at  the  height  of  per- 
fection in  these  counties  during  that  season  of  the  year. 
No  man  with  a  farm  should  be  without  a  berry  patch. 
Berries  are  of  such  easy  culture,  add  so  much  to  the 
delicacies  of  the  table,  and  are  so  easily  harvested,  it  is 
difficult  to  understand  how  even  a  farmer  not  engaged 
in  the  fruit  business  could  fail  to  have  a  berry  patch 
close  to  his  home  not  only  to  supply  the  table  with  fresh 
fruits  during  the  early  summer  months,  but  also  to 
have  the  berries  in  surplus  made  into  jellies  and  jams 
for  use  during  the  winter  season.  WTiere  conditions  are 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


93 


A  berry  patch  for  the  home.     By  planting  an  assortment,  it  is  possible  to  have  berries  from  April  to  December  in 
California.     Row  1.  Loganberries;  Row  2.  Cuthbert  Raspberries;  Row  3.  Himalaya  Blackberries. 


favorable  for  berry  culture  and  close  to  the  markets  of 
any  consequence  they  could  be  made  immensely 
profitable  when  grown  along  commercial  lines. 

PREPARING  THE  GROUND 

The  preparation  of  the  ground  should  be  thorough. 
The  roots  being  close  to  the  top  of  the  ground  and  of  a 
small  rather  fibrous  nature,  the  importance  of  having 
the  soil  in  the  very  best  possible  condition  to  insure  a 
good  stand  of  plants  and  a  satisfactory  growth  must 
be  apparent  to  anyone  engaged  in  berry  culture. 
Thorough  dressing  with  well  rotted  stable  manure  will 
do  much  to  promote  a  vigorous  growth  the  first  season, 
and  having  secured  this,  profitable  crops  may  be  ex- 
pected the  second  year  after  planting.  Mulching  with 
stable  manure  and  discretion  in  the  use  of  commercial 
fertilizer  will  do  much  to  maintain  thriftiness  in  the 
plants  and  with  it  a  heavy  production  of  fine,  large, 
luscious  berries.  As  has  already  been  stated  berries  can 
not  be  grown  in  California  without  irrigation.  So  before 
planting,  the  land  should  be  graded,  having  the  grade 
as  uniform  as  possible  to  prevent  flooding.  A  berry 
grower  should  be  absolutely  certain  of  water  when  it  is 
required,  and  should  there  be  any  question  about  the 
supply  from  ditches,  a  pumping  plant  should  be  installed 
to  have  water  available  whenever  it  is  needed,  for  a 
delay  of  even  a  few  days  may  mean  the  loss  of  the  entire 
crop. 

STRAWBERRIES 

In  laying  off  the  ground  for  strawberries  it  should  be 
graded  so  the  plot  has  a  gradual  fall.  Extreme  care  is 
necessary  in  this,  otherwise  sections  of  the  beds  may 
become  submerged  in  irrigating,  thus  causing  the  berries 
to  rot.  There  are  several  methods  of  laying  out  straw- 
berry beds.  In  the  counties  of  Alameda,  Santa  Clara 
and  Santa  Cruz,  where  the  business  is  carried  on  on  a 


commercial  scaje,  the  berry  plants  are  set  in  a  bed  two 
feet  wide  with  a  ditch  between.  The  plants  are  set 
eighteen  inches  apart  and  about  four  inches  from  the 
edge  of  the  bed.  In  the  southern  part  of  the  state  it  is 
customary  to  hill  up  a  single  row  about  six  inches  high 
with  a  ditch  between.  Should  there  be  much  fall 
to  the  piece  of  the  ground  in  which  the  planting  is 
made  wooden  or  metal  weirs  should  be  placed  in  the 
fields  so  that  when  irriga  tin  g  the  patch  the  water  in  any  one 
section  will  be  on  a  level.  It  is  very  important  during 
the  fruit  season  to  keep  the  plants  in  an  active  state  of 
growth  by  irrigating,  weeding  and  hoeing.  In  order 
to  obtain  large,  highly  flavored  berries  pinch  off  the 
runners  as  fast  as  they  appear;  this  will  cause  the 
plants  to  stock  out,  as  it  were,  and  the  very  finest 
strawberries  may  be  expected  the  following  season. 

STANDARD  VARIETIES 

Banner,  Brandywine,  Jessie,  Marshall. 


THE  BLACKBERRY  AND  RASPBERRY 

The  most  satisfactory  way  of  handling  blackberries 
is  to  plant  in  rows  six  feet  apart,  with  eight  feet  between 
the  rows.  The  first  season  all  the  shoots  which  have 
attained  a  height  of  two  feet  should  be  shortened  into 
twenty  inches.  This  will  cause  them  to  send  out  many 
lateral  shoots,  so  that  instead  of  having  the  fruiting 
shoots  confined  to  a  few  canes,  there  will  be  a  number  of 
lateral  shoots  from  each  of  the  main  canes  for  producing 
fruit  clusters.  These  laterals  should  have  one-half  of 
their  growth  cut  off  in  the  winter  months.  In  the 
second  year,  as  soon  as  the  season's  crop  has  been  har- 
vested, cut  away  the  fruiting  wood,  so  that  all  the 
energy  of  the  plant  will  be  forced  into  the  new  growth. 
The  young  shoots  should  again  be  cut  back  at  the  proper 


ROEDIKG'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Strawberry  beds  and  the  method  of  irrigating  them. 


height  to  develop  laterals,  and  these,  as  has  already 
been  directed,  should  be  cut  back  in  the  winter  months. 
This  method  of  pruning  has  other  advantages  by  mak- 
ing the  canes  sturdy  and  self-supporting,  and  causes  the 
fruit  to  be  distributed  over  the  entire  plant  instead  of 
being  confined  to  the  terminal  growth. 

By  having  the  rows  eight  feet  apart,  cultivation  can 
be  carried  on  with  a  horse,  a  very  important  point.  A 
good  supply  of  water,  thorough  cultivation  and  liberal 
application  of  rotted  barnyard  manure  are  important 
factors  in  the  cultivation  of  the  blackberry. 

POPULAR  VARIETIES  OF  BLACKBERRIES 

Crandall's  Early,  Erie.  Evergreen,  Lawton. 

POPULAR  VARIETIES  OF  RASPBERRIES 

Cuthbert,    Golden   Queen,    Gregg,   Superlative. 

LOGAN,  MAMMOTH  AND  HIMALAYA 
BLACKBERRIES 

These  berries  are  practically  in  a  class  by  themselves, 
and  the  cultural  directions  for  one  apply  to  the  other, 
so  we  will  consider  them  under  the  same  head.  They 
should  be  planted  in  rows  six  feet  apart  and  eight  to  ten 
feet  between  the  rows.  The  best  results  are  obtained 
by  trellising  the  runners  to  wires  on  heavy  posts  which 
will  hold  the  wire  taut.  As  soon  as  the  fruiting  season 
is  past  the  fruiting  canes  should  be  cut  away  and  the 
new  canes  be  bunched  together  and  wound  around  the 
wire.  At  least  two  wires  should  be  strung  on  the  posts, 


so  that  as  soon  as  one  wire  is  covered  the  remaining 
canes  may  be  wound  around  the  other.  By  following 
this  method  from  year  to  year  a  heavy  crop  of  large, 
fine  berries  may  be  looked  for  annually. 

A  novel  method  of  handling  them  is  to  plant  in 
squares  8x8  feet.  Drive  three  stakes  one  and  one-half 
feet  into  the  ground,  using  2  inch  x  2  inch  x6  feet  posts. 
Nail  an  old  barrel  hoop  on  the  top  of  the  posts,  and 
another  two  feet  from  the  top.  The  shoots  are  trained 
over  these  hoops.  It  is  simply  astonishing  the  amount 
of  fruit  which  will  be  obtained  by  this  method  of  han- 
dling. Another  satisfactory  plan  is  to  set  4  inch  x  6  inch 
x  7  foot  pests  twenty  feet  apart  and  nail  1  inch  x  3  inch 
x  18  inch  cross  ties  to  each  post.  Set  the  pests  three 
feet  in  the  ground  and  string  No.  12  galvanized  wire  on 
the  cross  ties,  holding  it  in  place  with  staples.  The  new 
shoots  should  be  trained  across,  winding  them  around 
the  wires  from  one  wire  to  the  other. 

VARIETIES  RIPENING  IN  THE  ORDER  LISTED 

Loganberry,  Mammoth  Blackberry,  Himalaya 
Blackberry. 

THE  DEWBERRY 

The  improved  varieties  of  dewberry  or  trailing  black- 
berry are  very  popular.  They  are  enormous  croppers, 
produce  fruit  of  the  very  best  quality,  which  ripens 
fully  two  weeks  earlier  than  any  of  the  blackberries. 
Plants  should  be  set  four  feet  apart,  with  rows  six  feet 
apart.  When  there  is  not  sufficient  rainfall  to  keep  the 
vines  in  active  growing  condition,  irrigation  should  be 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


95 


The  Mammoth  Blackberry  originated  in  California,  an  all-around  berry  which  has   held  its  own  as  a  standard 

with  the  growers. 


practised.  Immediately  following  the  harvesting,  all 
the  old  canes  should  be  cut  off,  and  the  following  spring 
the  new  ones  should  be  trained  to  a  wire  two  feet  from 
the  ground.  The  method  of  trellising  is  the  same  as  for 
the  other  varieties  of  trailing  vines,  except  that  the 
canes  are  trained  closer  to  the  ground. 

POPULAR  VARIETIES 

Gardena,  Lucretia. 

CURRANTS  AND  GOOSEBERRIES 

The  district  in  which  either  one  will  grow  to  advan- 
tage seems  to  be  confined  to  the  counties  surrounding 
San  Francisco  bay.  It  is  useless  to  attempt  to  grow 
them  in  the  interior  valleys,  for  the  dry,  hot  air  and  the 
bright  sunshine  causes  them  to  succumb  very  quickly. 
They  do  very  well,  however,  in  the  mountainous  regions 
in  any  part  of  the  state  at  an  elevation  of  from  three  to 
five  thousand  feet.  In  the  districts  in  which  they 
thrive  they  are  as  a  rule  planted  between  orchard  rows, 
and  if  well  manured,  cultivated  and  pruned  they  pro- 
duce abundantly  without  irrigation.  The  only  variety 
which  will  grow  in  the  interior  is  the  Crandall's  black 
currant.  In  setting  either  currants  or  gooseberries  the 
rows  should  be  six  feet  apart  and  the  plants  set  three 
feet  apart  in  rows.  It  is  not  necessary  to  dwell  on  the 
value  of  the  currant  nor  its  uses,  for  every  housewife 
knows  that  there  is  no  jelly  so  highly  colored  and 
flavored  as  that  made  from  the  currant.  Plants  are 
trained  as  bushes.  They  should  be  pruned  every  win- 
ter. This  should  consist  of  thinning  and  the  removal 
of  dead  wood.  If  there  is  an  inclination  for  the  plants 
to  grow  out  of  shape,  the  current  season's  growth  should 
be  shortened  in. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETIES  OF  CURRANTS 

Cherry,  Crandall's  Black,  Fay's  Prolific,  Perfection, 
White  Grape. 

COMMERCIAL  VARIETY  OF  GOOSEBERRY 

Oregon  Champion. 


VEGETABLE  AND  ESCULENT  ROOTS 

The  shipping  and  canning  of  asparagus  has  developed 
into  a  very  important  industry  in  this  state.  There  are 
few  vegetables  which  are  more  popular  than  asparagus. 
The  very  fact  that  it  will  grow  and  produce  with  very 
little  or  no  care  should  cause  every  family  to  have  at 
least  a  few  plants  in  their  vegetable  garden.  It  becomes 
tough  and  quite  bitter  after  it  is  out  of  the  ground  for  a 
few  days.  To  fully  appreciate  its  delicious  flavor, 
asparagus  must  be  eaten  the  very  day  that  it  is  cut. 
There  is  a  difference  of  opinion  as  to  when  it  should  be 
cut.  That  it  is  more  tender  just  as  the  tips  begin  to 
poke  their  heads  above  ground  is  a  fact  which  must  be 
admitted  without  much  argument .  The  first  and  second 
years  after  planting  it  is  far  better  not  to  cut  the  stalks 
but  to  allow  them  to  grow.  The  plants  should  be  set 
three  feet  apart  and  the  rows  should  be  at  least  six  feet 
apart.  In  planting,  spread  out  the  roots  and  plant  six 
inches  below  the  surface  of  the  ground.  Asparagus  is  a 
gross  feeder,  and  unlike  most  other  plants  liberal  appli- 
cations of  stable  manure  and  rock  salt,  well  worked  into 
the  soil,  are  very  valuable  adjuncts  to  its  successful 
culture. 

THE  STANDARD  VARIETIES 

Canover's  Colossal,  Palmetto. 

THE  GLOBE  ARTICHOKE 

There  are  two  distinct  types  of  artichoke.  The  one 
so  much  prized  by  epicures  and  which  is  so  extensively 
grown  in  California,  particularly  in  the  suburbs  of  San 
Francisco,  where  it  produces  from  early  winter  and 
practically  through  the  entire  summer,  is  the  Globe 
artichoke  (Cynara  Scolymus).  It  is  a  gross  feeder  and 
must  be  well  manured.  In  the  interior  sections  of  the 
state  its  flower  buds  do  not  appear  until  late  spring. 
The  plant  presents  a  very  tropical  appearance  and  is 
therefore  a  valuable  addition  to  any  garden.  The 
flower  buds  should  be  cut  off  as  soon  as  they  are  well 
formed  and  before  the  scales  open,  otherwise  they  are 
tough  and  tasteless.  Never  allow  the  flowers  to  mature, 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


97 


There  is  big  money  in  hogs.    Then  why  not  plant  the  Jerusalem  Artichoke?    The  great  fattener  during  the  winter 

months.     The  hogs  do  their  own  harvesting. 


as  the  plants  will  dwindle  down  and  die.  Suckers  should 
be  taken  during  the  winter  months  and  planted  three 
feet  apart,  with  the  rows  six  feet. 

Experience  has  demonstrated  that  the  best  quality 
of  artichokes  is  produced  by  cutting  the  plants  down 
during  the  month  of  July,  thus  stimulating  the  growth, 
causing  them  to  produce  an  abundance  of  flower  buds 
during  the  winter  and  spring  months.  San  Francisco 
county  is  the  great  artichoke  center  of  California, 
shipments  annually  aggregating  five  hundred  carloads 
from  this  point. 

THE  JERUSALEM  ARTICHOKE 

The  Jerusalem  artichoke  (Helianthus  Tuberosus)  is 
radically  different  in  its  character  of  growth  from  the 
preceding,  and  will  thrive  on  any  well  drained  soil. 
The  tubers  should  be  cut  to  single  eyes  and  planted 
eighteen  inches  apart  with  rows  four  feet  apart.  The 
method  of  cultivation  and  hilling  is  practically  the  same 
as  for  potatoes.  The  tubers  are  not  mature  until  the 
tops  are  frozen,  when  they  may  be  dug  up  and  used  for 
hog  feed,  or  the  animals  may  be  turned  loose  to  feed 
and  root  them  out  themselves.  They  produce  enor- 
mously on  good  soil — with  liberal  cultivation  and  mod- 
erate irrigation,  fifteen  to  twenty  tons  to  the  acre. 
This  vegetable  is  highly  prized  by  the  French  people, 
and  in  New  Orleans,  where  it  is  extensively  grown,  it  is 
prepared  for  use  by  stewing,  for  making  soups  and  as  a 
salad.  For  the  fanners  of  California  it  possesses  so 
much  merit  that  no  farm  having  a  few  hogs  should  be 
without  a  patch  of  these  tubers,  which  will  supply  feed 


during  the  winter  months  when  all  other  foods  are 
scarce  and  high. 

THE  RHUBARB 

With  the  introduction  of  the  Crimson  Winter  rhubarb 
from  Australia  and  the  improved  varieties  which  have 
been  developed  from  it,  it  is  possible  to  have  rhubarb 
on  our  markets  during  the  entire  year.  The  Crimson 
Winter  is  at  the  height  of  its  production  in  the  mid- 
winter months,  and  the  climatic  conditions  of  the  south- 
ern part  of  the  state  seem  to  be  much  better  adapted 
to  its  culture  than  the  coast  counties  around  San 
Francisco  bay,  where  the  Myatt's  Linnaeus,  Victoria 
and  Niles  Giant  do  so  remarkably  well.  It  supplies  the 
market  with  the  most  delicious  and  healthful  vegetable 
when  all  deciduous  fruits,  except  the  apple,  are  out  of 
the  way.  For  stewing  and  for  pies  it  makes  a  dessert 
dish  which  is  very  much  relished.  The  plants  are  gross 
feeders.  They  adapt  themselves  almost  in  any  soil, 
although  they  simply  luxuriate  in  the  deep,  loamy  black 
soil.  To  secure  the  best  results  in  the  production  of 
stalks,  a  liberal  application  of  stable  manure  is  very 
beneficial,  and  this,  after  the  plants  are  four  years  old, 
should  be  supplemented  with  the  application  of  nitrate 
of  soda  not  to  exceed  two  hundred  pounds  to  the  acre, 
or  blood  and  bone  at  the  rate  of  four  hundred  pounds 
per  acre.  These  fertilizers  should  be  applied  by  plowing 
out  furrows  on  each  side  of  the  rows  of  the  plants, 
throwing  it  back,  and  then  irrigating.  If  after  the 
fertilizer  is  applied  it  is  followed  by  a  good  soaking  rain, 
the  irrigating  will  not  be  necessary. 


INDEX  TO  CONTENTS 


A  Page 

Almond..                      29 

Stocks.  . 30 

Classification 30 

Pruning 30 

Gathering 30 

Irrigation 30 

Commercial  Varieties 32 

Period  of  Ripening 32 

Apple 8 

Soil  and  Situation 8 

Points  to  be  Observed 9 

Shaping  the  Tree 9 

Roots 9 

Thinning 10 

Gathering  and  Storing 10 

Commercial  Varieties 10 

Crab  Apples 10 

Apricot 22 

Stocks 22 

Pruning 22 

Thinning 24 

Gathering 24 

Irrigation 24 

Commercial  Varieties 25 

Ripening  Period 25 

Artichoke,  Globe 95 

Jerusalem 97 

Avocado 73 

Stocks 75 

Distances  Apart  and  Pruning 75 

Gathering 75 

Eating  the  Avocado 75 

Irrigation 75 

Meritorious  Varieties 75 


B 

Banana 78 

Varieties 78 

Berries : 

Blackberry  and  Raspberry 93 

Currants 95 

Dewberry 94 

Gooseberry 95 

Himalaya  Blackberry 94 

Loganberry 94 

Mammoth  Blackberry 94 

Raspberry 93 

Strawberry 93 

Blackberry 93 

Himalaya 94 

Mammoth 94 

Popular  Varieties  of  Blackberries 94 

Blackberry  and  Raspberry 93 

Popular  Varieties  of  Blackberries 94 

Popular  Varieties  of  Raspberries 94 


Caprification 42 

Planting  Caprifig  Trees 46 

Varieties  of  Caprifigs 48 

Carob 80 

Cherimoyer 76 


Page 

Cherry 15 

Stocks 15 

Pruning 16 

Gathering 16 

Irrigation 17 

Commercial  Varieties 17 

Time  of  Ripening  in  a  Cherry  Section.  . 17 

Chestnut 32 

Pruning 33 

Stocks 33 

Gathering  and  Storing 33 

Varieties  of  Commercial  Value 33 

Citrus  Fruits 57 

Soil  and  Situation 59 

Selecting  the  Trees 60 

Method  of  Planting 61 

Stocks  for  Citrus  Trees 61 

Distances  Apart 62 

Pruning 63 

Pruning  the  Lemon 63 

Pruning  the  Pomelo 64 

Pruning  the  Lime 64 

Pruning  the  Citron 64 

Care  of  the  Orchard 64 

Fertilizers  and  Fertilization 65 

The  Time  to  Plant 66 

Packing  the  Orange 67 

Growing,  Curing,  Packing  the  Lemon 68 

Sorting  as  to  Quality 70 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Oranges 70 

Period  of  Ripening 70 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Lemons 70 

Varieties  of  Lemon  Worthy  of  Trial 70 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Pomelos 70 

Varieties  of  Pomelos  Worthy  of  Trial 70 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Limes 70 

Variety  of  Limes  Worthy  of  Trial 70 

Commercial  Variety  of  Citron 70 

Currants 95 

Commercial  Varieties  of 95 

Currants  and  Gooseberries 95 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Currants 95 

Commercial  Variety  of  Gooseberry 95 


Dewberry 94 

Popular  Varieties  of 95 


Feijoa 76 

Fig 39 

Localities  Favorable  for 39 

Brief  History 39 

Caprification 42 

Planting  and  Pruning 45 

Freezing  to  the  Ground 45 

Planting  Caprifig  Trees 46 

Gathering 46 

Gathering  and  Drying 47 

Irrigation 48 

Crop  Sure — No  Failures 48 

Varieties  of  Commercial  Value 48 

Varieties  Worthy  of  Trial 48 

Varieties  of  Caprifigs 48 


ROBBING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Fruit  Growing  as  a  Business:  Page 

Beginning  Right 3 

Preparation  of  the  Soil 3 

Selecting  Nursery  Stock 4 

Time  to  Plant 4 

Treatment  when  Received 4 

Preparing  Trees  for  Planting 5 

How  to  Plant 5 

Square  System 5 

Quincunx  System 5 

Hexagonal  System 6 

Alternate  System .  .  .  .* 6 

Planting  Distances 6 

Number  of  Trees  to  the  Acre 7 

Blasting  the  Holes 7 

Important  Details 7 

Bringing  an  Orchard  or  Vineyard  into  Bearing. .  8 

Must  be  Cut  Back 8 

Irrigation 8 

Fruits,  Small 92 

Preparing  the  Ground 93 


Globe  Artichoke 95 

Gooseberries 95 

Commercial  Variety  of 95 

Grape 81 

Situation  and  Soils 82 

Laying  Out  a  Vineyard 83 

Distances  to  Plant 83 

Preparing  for  Planting 84 

How  to  Plant 84 

Care  and  Pruning  the  Vines 84 

Resistant  Vines 86 

Irrigation  and  Cultivation 86 

Fertilizing 87 

Gathering  for  Shipping 87 

Making  Raisins 89 

Naturals 89 

Oil  Bleached 89 

Sulphur  Bleached 90 

New  Method  of  Handling  Raisin  Grapes 91 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Table  Grapes 92 

Collection   of  Table   Grapes   Named  in   Their 

Order  of  Ripening 92 

American    Varieties    of    Table    Grapes    Which 

Thrive  in  California 92 

Raisin  Grapes  Named  in  Order  of  Their 

Ripening 92 

Commercial  Varieties  of  Wine  Grapes 92 

Varieties  of  Resistant  Grapes  Adaptable  to  Cal- 
ifornia Soils 92 

Guava. .  76 


H 

Himalaya  Blackberry  .........................     94 


Jerusalem  Artichoke  ..........................     97 

Jujube  ......................................     78 

Processing  .................................     80 


Logan,  Mammoth  and  Himalaya  Blackberries. ...  94 

Varieties  Ripening  in  the  Order  Listed 94 

Loganberries. 94 

Loquat 76 

Varieties  to  Grow. .  78 


M 


Mammoth  Blackberries . 


Page 
94 


N 

Nuts 29 

Almond 29 

Chestnut 32 

Pecan 33 

Pistachio 35 

Walnut 35 

Nectarine 29 

Season  of  Ripening 29 


Olive 49 

Pickling  the  Olive 49 

Planting 49 

Pruning 51 

Stocks .  52 

Gathering 53 

Methods  of  Pickling 53 

How  to  Make  Olive  Oil 53 

Ripe  Olives  for  Home  Consumption 55 

Commercial  Pack 55 

Canning  Ripe  Olives 55 

Irrigating 55 

Varieties  Commercially  Important 57 

Period  of  Ripening 57 


Peach 25 

Stocks 26 

Distances  Apart 26 

Pruning 26 

Thinning 27 

Gathering 27 

Drying 27 

Irrigation 28 

Commercial  Varieties 28 

Varieties  Named  in  the  Order  in  Which  They 

Ripen 28 

Pear 11 

Soil  and  Situation 11 

Distances  Apart  and  Stocks 12 

Pruning  and  Shaping 12 

Thinning 13 

Gathering  and  Ripening 14 

Irrigation 14 

Commercial  Varieties : 15 

Time  of  Ripening 15 

Pecan 33 

Conditions  Favoring  its  Growth 33 

The  Harvesting .  35 

Varieties   Which   Have    Proved  Meritorious  in 

California 35 

Persimmon 71 

Planting  and  Pruning 71 

Commercial  Varieties 72 

Varieties  Worthy  of  Trial 72 

Time  of  Ripening  of  Commercial  Varieties 72 

Pistachio 35 

Plum 18 

Stocks 18 

Pruning 18 

Thinning 

Gathering 19 

Irrigation 19 

Commercial  Varieties  for  Shipping 

Commercial  Varieties  for  Canning 19 

Time  of  Ripening 19 


RCEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Page 

79 
Pomegranate '  ~ 

Situation  and  Soils '* 

Distances  Apart  and  Pruning  72 

Gathering ™ 

Meritorious  Varieties 'a 

Prune 

Stocks ~y 

Pruning •     ^| 

Gathering  and  Drying 99 

Commercial  Varieties  for  Drying . 

Commercial  Varieties  for  Shipping  '99 

Period  of  Ripening •     ^2 


Quince 


29 


Time  of  Ripening 


R 


Raisins',  Making 

Naturals 

Oil  Bleached 

Sulphur  Bleached 

New  Method  of  Handling  Raisin  Grapes 


Page 

Raspberry 

Popular  Varieties  of  Raspberries 

Rhubarb .  . 97 


Small  Fruits 

Preparing  the  Ground 

Strawberries '. 

Standard  Varieties 93 


Vegetable  and  Esculent  Roots 95 

The  Standard  Varieties 95 


W 

Walnut 35 

How  to  Plant 

Pruning : 36 

Special  Features 

Gathering  and  Curing 37 

Commercial  Varieties 39 

Varieties  Worthy  of  Trial 39 

Timber  Trees .  .  39 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


Almond  Tree,  Three-year-old ....                        .  .  .  30 

Apple  Tree,  with  Well-balanced  Head 9 

With  Leaders  and  Laterals  Shortened  In 9 

Apricot  Tree,  Showing  Successful  Pruning    . 

One-year-old 23 

Two-year-old 23 

Six-year-old 23 

Artichoke,  Globe •  96 

Jerusalem 97 

Avocado  Tree,  Fine  Type  of •  74 

Hard-shelled  Avocado 74 

B 

Bananas,  on  Property  of  Wm.  Plotts,  near  Whittier, 

Los  Angeles  County 78 

Blackberry,  Himalaya 92 

Mammoth 95 

Berry  Patch  for  the  Home :  Loganberries,  Cuthbert 

Raspberries  and  Himalaya  Berries 93 


Calimyrna  Fig  Orchard,  near  Fresno 38 

Washing  and  Cleaning  Dried  Calimyrna  Figs. .  .  47 

Caprifig : 

Stringing  Capris  on  Raffia  Fibre 42 

Branch  of  Roeding's  No.  3 40 

Roeding's  Caprifig  No.  3,  Showing  Magnificent 

Crop  of  Mamme  or  Winter  Figs 44 

Carob  Tree 80 

Cherimoyer  Tree 76 

Cherry  Tree,  Two-year-old 15 

Four-year-old 16 

Six-year-old 16 

With  Framework  Branches  Unchecked  17 

Magnificent  Cherry  Orchard 17 


Chestnuts  Grown  on  the  Pacific  Coast 31 

The  Marron  Combale,  in  Orchard  of  California 

Nursery  Company 32 

Citron  of  Commerce  Loaded  with  Fruit 68 

Citrus  Trees.  Method  of  Protecting  from  Frost ...  60 

Check  Method  of  Irrigating 61 

Furrow  Method  of  Irrigating 61 

Model  Citrus  Tree 62 


F 

Fig  Tree,  Just  from  Nursery 39 

Branch  of  Roeding's  No.  3  Caprifig.  .  40 

Calimyrna  Fig 41 

Stringing  the  Capris  on  Raffia  Fibre 

Fig  Wasp  (Blastophasga  grossorum) 43 

Wire  Basket  which  is  Suspended  in  the  Cali- 
myrna Fig  Trees 43 

Roeding's  Capri  No.   3,   Showing  Magnificent 

Crop  of  Mamme  or  Winter  Figs 44 

One-year-old  Orchard-grown  Fig  Tree 45 

Two-year-old  Fig  Tree,  with  Laterals  Cut  Back  45 
Three-year-old  Fig  Tree,  Showing  Current  Year's 

Growth 46 

Same  Tree  Cut  Back  and  Thinned 

Washing  and  Cleaning  Dried  Calimyrna  Figs. .  .  47 

Fig  Trees  Just  After  Pruning 48 

Old  Fig  Tree  Cut  Back  to  Develop  a  New  Head.  49 

Fig  Wasp  (Blastophaga  grossorum) 43 

G 

Globe  Artichoke 96 

Grapevine,  Pruned  and  Unpruned 80 

Three-year-old  Thompson  Seedless 81 

Four-year-old  Emperors,  Properly  Pruned 82 

One-year-old  Muscat 83 

Two-year-old  Muscat 83 

Three-year-old  Muscat,  Well  Trained 83 

Two-year-old  Muscat  Under  Old  Method 84 

Three-year-old  Muscat  with  Head  Started  from 

Central  Point .  . 84 


ROEDING'S  FRUIT  GROWERS'  GUIDE 


Page 

Two-year-old  Emperor  Properly  Trained 85 

Eight-year-old  Emperor  with  Spurs  Well  Dis- 
tributed    85 

Three-year-old    Thompson    Seedless    Showing 

Pruned  and  Unpruned  Vines 86 

Thompson  Seedless  with  Numerous  Stems 87 

Drying  Thompson  Seedless 88 

Sulphur  Houses  Used  for  Bleaching  the  Thomp- 
son Seedless 90 

Frame  Structure  for  Drying  Raisins 91 

H 

Himalaya  Blackberries 92,  93 


Jerusalem  Artichoke 97 

Jujube  Tree  Grown  by  U.  S.  Department  of  Agri- 
culture, Chico,  California 79 

Fruit  Branch  of  Chinese  Jujube 79 


Lemon  Tree,  Four-year-old  Eureka 60 

Transplanted   from   Nursery   to   Orchard  with 

Branches  Shortened  In 66 

One-year-old  Properly  Pruned 66 

Loquat  Orchard  of  C.  P.  Taft,  Section  of 77 

Loquats   from    Same,    One    of    His    Improved 

Varieties 77 

M 

Mammoth  Blackberry 95 

Muscat  Grapevine,  One-year-old 83 

Two-year-old 83 

Three-year-old,  Well  Trained . 83 

Two-year-old  Under  Old  Method 84 

Three-year-old  with  Head  Started  from  Central 

Point 48 


Olive  Tree,  One-year-old 49 

Same,  with  Branches  Sbortened  In 49 

Three-year-old  Ascolano 50 

Same,  with  Branches  Thinned  Out  and  Properly 

Pruned 51 

Sixty-acre  Mission  Olive  Orchard  of  Seven-year- 
old  Trees. 52 

Model  Olive  Plant  of  Los  Angeles  Fruit  Growers' 

Association 54 

Same,  Showing  Grinding  Up  of  Olives  Before 

Pressing 56 

Bottling  Room 56 

Orange,  Washington  Navel 70 

Orange  Orchard,  Six-year-old  Valencia  Late 59 

Orange  Tree,  One-year-old,  Unpruned 63 

Same,  Pruned 64 

Three-year-old,  Unpruned 65 

Same.  Pruned 65 

Orchard  near  Exeter,  Bird's-Eye  View  of 2 


P  Page 

Peach  Tree,  Four-year-old 24 

One-year-old,  Nursery-grown 25 

One-year-old,  Orchard-grown 25 

Two-year-old,  Unpruned 25 

Same,  Pruned 25 

Four-year-old,  Unpruned 26 

Same,  Pruned 26 

Selma  Cling  Peach 28 

Pear  Tree,  One-year-old  Orchard 11 

Three-year-old  Bartlett H 

Five-year-old  Bartlett 12 

Eight-year-old  Bartlett  Pear  Orchard 12 

Monarch  Pear  Trees  near  Santa  Clara 14 

Pear  Orchard,  Irrigating,  by  Furrow  System. .  .  13 

Pecan,  Stuart,  a  Paper-shell  Variety 32 

Grafted  Paper-shell  Variety 34 

Persimmon,  Hachiya 72 

Four-year-old  Hyakume  Persimmon  Tree 71 

A  Well-balanced  Persimmon  Tree 71 

Pistachio  Tree,  Twenty-year-old 35 

Planting: 

Square  System 5 

Quincunx  System 6 

Hexagonal  System 6 

Alternate  System 7 

Planting  Board 7 

Plum  Tree,  Two-year-old 18 

Three-year-old 18 

Six-year-old 19 

Santa  Rosa  Plum 19 

Pomegranate  Tree 73 

Pomelo,  Marsh's  Seedless 58 

Budded  on  Citrus  Trifoliata  Root,  Resulting  in 

Unevenness  in  Size  of  Trees 69 

Prune  Tree,  Improved  French 20 

Three-year-old  French  Prune  Orchard, 

Unpruned 21 

Three-year-old  French  Prune  Orchard,  Pruned. .  21 


Strawberry  Beds  and  Methods  of  Irrigating  Them     94 


Thompson  Seedless  Grapevine,  Three-year-old ....  81 
Three-year-old,  Showing  Pruned  and  Unpruned 

Vines 86 

With  Numerous  Stems 8.7 

Drying  Thompson  Seedless : .  .  .  88 

Sulphur  Houses  Used  for  Bleaching 90 

W 

Walnut  Tree,  Grafted,  Just  from  Nursery '. . .  36 

Same,  Topped  and  Root  Pruned  for  Planting. . .  36 

With  Fine  Symmetrical  Head 37 

Top-worked 37 

Franquette  Walnut 37 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


